God Save The Queen
by Timothy D
Summary: An ancient prophecy predicts that Danny is to become King of the Ghost Zone, but that's not all. According to the prophecy, Danny is supposed to take Sam as his wife and Queen. How will the two lovebirds deal with school, being rulers of another dimension as well as old and new enemies coming after them? Post PP.
1. The Prophecy

**Hello there, Tim D (Aka Jack Moxley) here with another story for you. This story is a request by t-rex989 who asked me: ****Do you think you could make a Danny Phantom story where Danny and Sam are king and queen of the Ghost Zone?**

**My first challenge: t-rex, I'm going to do my best! I won't let you down.**

**So Ladies and Gentlemen, Boys and Girls, Children of all ages, I present you with: God Save The Queen**

God Save the Queen

Synopsis: Following the events of the Phantom Planet, in addition to becoming Earth's primary defender, Danny is declared King of the Ghost Zone. A wise saying says "that a king cannot rule without a queen" and so Danny takes Sam to be his wife. However, being the savior of the world, high school student, and ruler of an alternate dimension makes Danny's life become a lot more hectic than ever before. Add in new enemies as well as foes from the past gunning for his head, Danny struggles not only to stay alive but to stay sane.

"Exactly 3 months ago. Our world was in peril."

Tucker Foley, the mayor of Amity Park, speaks into a microphone with a big smile on his face. His outfit is casual, but business savvy. His hair has grown out a bit, now a few centimeters longer.

"Were it not for the efforts of one boy, we all would've died; the world destroyed," Tucker said as the audience roared with cheers and applause. "One boy, half human, half ghost made a valiant effort to save the Earth. In the end, he made a truce with the residents of the ghost zone to team up and saved the whole planet. After the events, he revealed a secret he never believed he would share with anyone but his few close friends and family."

Danny stood behind his best friend, holding hands with his girlfriend Sam. She could tell he was incredibly nervous and squeezed his hand tightly.

"That boy is my best friend Danny Fenton aka Danny Phantom" Tucker said as Danny stepped forward, his cheeks blushing red.

"Alright, no need to be nervous, we can do this" Danny thought to himself as he and Sam walked out and onto the stage. They waved to the crowd and smiled at all their cheering. Several cameras flashed and several tried to move closer to the hero and his girlfriend. Tucker presented his friend with a gold medal in honor of his bravery. Everything was going great until suddenly a flaming arrow whizzed past Danny's head and became embedded in one of the speakers.

Everyone looked up and saw a ghost wearing battle armor. Danny instantly recognized the ghost as one of his archenemies Skulker.

"I'm going ghost!" Danny said, turning and winking at the audience, who cheered loudly as they got to see their savior jump into action.

"Wait!" Skulker yelled before being punched by Danny. He crash landed hard not the mayor's limousine, completely destroying it.

"Sorry about that" Danny apologized.

"Don't worry about it" Tucker assured him.

Danny then turned his attention back to the hunter ghost.

"What are you doing here?" Danny asked, holding Skulker in a tight headlock.

"Control yourself ghost child, if I wanted to attack you, that arrow wouldn't have missed" Skulker assured him.

"You have 10 seconds to tell me why you're even here" Danny threatened.

"Calm down, what is it you humans say; do not shoot the messenger" Skulker replied. "I am simply here to deliver a message to you"

"And you felt the need to shoot a flaming arrow at my head?" Danny asked, rolling his eyes.

"If you had been paying attention, you would've noticed that the message was attached to that arrow." Skulker replied.

Danny flew over to where the arrow was embedded, being careful not to take his eye off Skulker, and saw that there was indeed a note attached to the arrow. Danny took a few minutes to read over the note.

_"Danny, I understand you're still getting used to letting the cat out of the bag as well as the subsequent fame, but there are important matters I need to discuss with you. Come meet me at the Clock Tower; 3:30 PM Eastern Standard Time. Don't be late, Clockwork. PS, bring Samantha with you, this concerns her as well"_

Danny wondered why Clockwork would go through the trouble of having a message delivered to him via courier when he could've just as easily delivered the message himself. Whatever he needed to talk about must've been important. Especially since Clockwork told him to bring Sam with him.

"Is everything okay?" Asked Sam.

"Fine" Danny replied. "Clockwork wants to see us"

"Us?" Sam asked, confused.

"Yeah, he said he needed to talk to both of us about something important" Danny told her as he scooped her into his arms and started to fly off.

"Hey! Where are you going?" Tucker asked.

"I just remembered, I have to meet up with someone" Danny replied as he flew through the air.

"So what exactly is this important thing Clockwork wanted to talk to us about?" Sam asked.

"I don't know, he just told us to be at the Clock Tower by 3:00" Danny said.

Since Danny knew the Ghost Zone like the back of his hand, Danny took the quickest shortcut to Clockwork's lair. It wasn't long before the two lovebirds were arriving at the Clock Tower. Danny checked his watch and saw that it was 2:59. Just as they had suspected, Clockwork was waiting for them.

"Glad to see you two got my invitation" Clockwork said, going from his adult form to his elderly form.

"So what's the emergency?" Danny asked. "Why did you need to see us right away?"

"Because this involves your future" Clockwork answered.

Danny immediately tensed up, fearing it had anything to do with his evil future self. Sam could tell he was scared and grasped his hand to calm him down.

"Did Dan escape? Is he going to escape?" Danny asked.

"No, nothing like that at all" Clockwork informed him, switching to his child form and pulling out a scroll.

He unrolled the scroll and showed it to Danny and Sam. The scroll depicted two figures who resembled Danny and Sam dressed like a King and Queen. On the figure resembling Danny's head was the Crown of Fire and the figure resembling Sam wore the Ring of Rage on her left hand.

"They look just like us" the two said to each other.

"That's because they are you" Clockwork told them.

"What do you mean they're us?" Sam asked.

"Allow me to explain" Clockwork said. "Frostbite already told you of the prophecy that said Danny was to defeat Pariah Dark. But there was more to the prophecy. According to the prophecy, shortly after the defeat of the Ghost King, Danny was to become the new King of the Ghost Zone and take a wife. I figured that now was as good a time as ever to tell you of your destiny"

"So let me get this straight: An ancient prophecy predicted that I would become king of the Ghost Zone and take Sam as my queen?" Danny asked, trying to wrap his head around the situation.

Clockwork nodded.

"There has to be some mistake. I'm only 16, I wouldn't know the first thing about being a king, let alone King of the Ghost Zone!" Danny yelled.

"This is no mistake" Clockwork stated, shifting from child to adult. "I've seen into the future and this is your destiny"

"It was also my destiny to kill my friends and family, and lay waste to the world" Danny reminded him. "You of all people should know the future isn't set in stone"

"That is true" Clockwork said. "I won't pester either of you, whether or not you two choose to rule the Ghost Zone is completely up to you"

Sam was completely silent. She was still trying to grasp the situation. Like Danny, she didn't know whether to go with the prophecy of just walk away. Danny, not wanting to think about it any further, grabbed Sam and departed. He tried to push the idea of being king out of his head but he just couldn't do it.

Being half human and half ghost was difficult enough. Because of Vlad's actions, some humans (particularly the Guys in White) still didn't trust him. He had spent most of his superhero career fighting ghosts so his relationship with them wasn't any better. But maybe, Danny started to think, if he did in fact become king, he could mend relations between humans and ghosts.

Maybe accepting the offer could be the start of a new beginning.


	2. Chapter 1

God Save The Queen: Chapter 2

The Observant were never known for their patience. Clockwork was dreading their visit. Right on time, the omniscient (Or so they thought) ghosts burst into his dimension.

"We trust you told Danny of his fate" The first observant asked. Clockwork nodded his head.

"And?" the second Observant asked.

"And what?" Clockwork asked.

"How did he respond?" The first Observant asked.

"He wasn't very fond of the idea of becoming Ghost King" Clockwork informed them. "It may take some time for the boy to reach his decision."

"We don't have time to wait!" The observant replied. "Daniel Fenton is your responsibility. You need to get him to accept his destiny or else the entire world could be at risk"

"Wow, haven't heard that one before" Clockwork quipped, "Tell me, exactly how is Daniel refusing to take the throne going to threaten the world?"

"If Daniel Fenton does not take his rightful place as King of the Ghost Zone, someone else might" The first Observant replied. "Someone reckless or only bent on power and destruction."

"I understand your concern, but trying to force Daniel to take the throne will only make him more reluctant and hesitant" Clockwork said. "I must allow Danny Fenton to make his own decision and if after a while he still refuses to take the throne, I will take care of the problem myself. At the current moment however, I do not see any need to interfere with things"

"I hope you know what you're talking about" The second Observant said.

Clockwork was getting tired of arguing with them and could barely suppress his frustration.

"You forget your place" Clockwork hissed. "Despite your supposed omniscience you fail to see that the timeliness will play out just fine."

Before either could reply, Clockwork turned his back on them and muttered "I believe you know the way out".

As soon as Clockwork felt the Observants' presence disappear, he sighed breath of relief. The Observant weren't usually much of a problem, but whenever they felt the world was in peril, they could be a real pain in the neck. Clockwork wondered how he managed to put up with their impatience and stubbornness. They were never content to see how a situation would play out and felt that their and only their solution would solve the problem. Everything would play out just fine, it would just take a little bit of time.

It had been a week since his meeting with Clockwork and Danny still couldn't shake the idea out of his head, no matter how hard he tried. It was noticeable to some people that something was bothering him. Saturday morning and Danny was looking forward to a day off to enjoy himself.

_"Long live the king!" Danny heard a crowd yell out._

_Danny opened his eyes and saw himself standing before a large audience. He looked down and saw himself wearing a long red elegant robe. He looked to his left and saw Sam standing right beside him, also wearing a long and elegant robe, except for it was black in contrast to Danny's red. To his right stood some ghost he didn't recognize. The ghost was dressed as a advisor._

_"What's going on?" Danny asked._

_"Your majesty, today you and your queen are being coronated and officially crowned king and queen." The advisor told him._

_"Coronation?" Danny asked, still confused._

_Before Danny could ask anymore questions he heard his name being called out._

Danny woke up and looked around. He wanted to make sure he was at home and in his bed and not in some castle in the Ghost Zone. Danny couldn't help but wonder if the dream was maybe a sign. That maybe he should take up the crown. Danny shook those thoughts out of his head and heard his name being called again.

"Danny, can you hear me?" Jazz asked.

"Yeah, what is it?" Danny asked in response.

"It's Sam, she said she wanted to speak with you about something important" Jazz informed him.

"Tell her I'm on my way" Danny said as he hopped out of bed and hurried to get dressed.

Within a few minutes, Danny was outside Sam's bedroom window. He quickly phased through and into her room.

"Hey, so what is it that you wanted to talk to me about?" Danny asked.

Sam was silent for a few moments, trying to think of how to phrase what she was thing to say before finally spitting it out. "I want to talk to you about the prophecy!"

"Huh?" Danny stated.

"Ever since hearing about our "destiny", I haven't been able to get the thought out of my head" Sam said. "and last night I had a strange dream involving both of us being coronated rulers"

"You too?!" Danny asked. "I had the same dream!"

"Do you think it could mean anything?" Sam asked.

"I don't know" Danny replied. "I admit, the idea of being king with you as my wife sounds appealing, but I don't think either one of us would be able to handle such a responsibility"

"But if we did accept the offer, ' we'd have a chance to make a change" Sam said.

"How?"

"After the world found out about the existence of ghosts, people on both sides have been growing paranoid" Sam reminded him.

"Not to mention the fact that Plasmius' actions didn't do much to help ease tensions or growing hostilities on either side" Danny said. "Now there are rumors circulating that the Guys in White are planning to go to war against the Ghost Zone"

"This could be our opportunity to prevent such a war from even happening" Sam pointed out.

"I'm still uneasy about this whole thing" Danny said.

"Maybe if we talk to someone about this we can come to a decision" Sam suggested.

**Make your decision soon, young lovebirds. For an ancient evil shall soon be awakened.**

**Ok, I'll be the first to admit that one of my biggest weaknesses when it comes to writing is writing the second chapter. I struggle with how to follow up on the first chapter and start the build up. As a result, my second chapters are usually short and repetitive. I promise that the next chapter will be better. Updates might become very random at best due to midterms, essays, reports, etc. However, I will still try to update at least once a month. Have A Nice Day!**


	3. The Decision

God Save The Queen, Chapter 2: The Decision

"So what is it you two wanted to talk to me about?" Jazz asked.

"We've been given a once in a lifetime opportunity, but we don't know whether or not we should take it" Sam told her.

"What kind of opportunity?" Jazz asked.

"A week ago Clockwork asked to speak with me and Sam in private" Danny started. "At first, I thought it was a problem concerning Dan. Much to my surprise, Clockwork told me that an ancient prophecy predicted Sam and I are supposed to be rulers of the Ghost Zone"

"What?!" Jazz shouted, wondering if this was just a joke. "You, a king?"

"Wow, thanks for having faith in me" Danny replied.

"Sorry" Jazz apologized. "I thought you were joking"

"I wish I was joking" Danny replied.

"So what's the problem?" Jazz asked.

"We don't know whether we should accept the offer or not" Danny said.

"We could use the opportunity to end the human ghost conflict" Sam said. "But we don't know if we're capable of taking on such a huge responsibility"

"You two are in quite the predicament" Jazz told them.

"So what should we do?" Both asked at the same time.

"Well as you pointed out, on one hand you could accept the offer and better the relationship between humans and ghosts," Jazz said, "but on the other hand, you're still very young and the stress of being in such a position of power could cause long term health consequences."

"Man, I wish this wasn't such a hard decision" Danny said, starting to become a little frustrated.

"It looks like a black and white situation to anyone else, either accept the offer and use it to help people" Sam said. "Or we can be selfish and refuse the offer and watch the situation degenerate even further"

"I wouldn't say refusing the offer would be selfish" Jazz. "Maybe you're just not ready, in which case, you can always change your mind and accept the offer at a later time"

"But what if by then it's too late?" Danny argued. "Someone else could try and become king by force or the conflict can become a full blown war"

Jazz thought for a minute before giving her answer. "I think you two should accept the offer"

Danny and Sam were both stunned for a minute, but decided to listen to Jazz's explanation.

"As you two pointed out, it is a huge responsibility and you can use it to help people" said Jazz. "The revelation that ghosts exist didn't exactly go over well with humans and organizations like the Guys in White are gaining more public support in cities that don't have any other way of dealing with ghosts. If things continue to spiral out of control, the Guys in White could gain more and more power and become a bigger influence on government affairs. Plus, the ghosts who are otherwise innocent, neutral or non-malevolent would also suffer should such a war break out. After everything has settled down, you can always give up the crown and return to a normal life"

Danny and Sam both took Jazz's words into consideration and looked at each other before finally making their ultimate decision.

/Later that Evening/

The lovebirds had returned to Clockwork's Clocktower to inform him of their decision.

"Have you made up your mind?" Clockwork asked, even though he already knew their answer.

Danny took a deep breath before saying "We decided to accept the proposal"

"Are you sure this is your final choice?" Clockwork asked.

The two nodded and Clockwork said. "Very well, I shall inform the Observants of your decision. There is still much to be done in preparation for your coronation"

As the two turned to walk away, Clockwork warned them "I must inform you that just because you are now King and Queen, doesn't mean that the other ghosts will trust you, especially the ones you've fought several times."

With that being said, Clockwork allowed the happy couple to depart. Unknown to them, Clockwork was just as worried as they were. This time of peace was merely the calm before the storm.

/The Next Day/

"Oh my God, are you serious!?" Tucker asked, barely able to contain his excitement upon hearing the news.

"Keep it down." Sam said, not wanting anymore attention from the paparazzi.

"Sorry, I just can't believe it, you and Danny are going to be-" Tucked said before Danny cut him off by placing his hand over his mouth.

"We can talk about this later somewhere private, but for right now can you just ignore it?" Danny asked. Tucker nodded his head and Danny took his hand away.

"Let's talk about it at City Hall, no cameras, no paparazzi, no one will hear a thing" Tucker suggested.

Sure enough, as soon as the trio were behind closed doors, Tucker began asking more questions, wanting to know as much as possible.

"So, tell me more? I've got to know everything!" Tucker said excitedly.

"Dude, calm down; it's not that big of a deal" Danny tried to hush him.

"Not that big of a deal? My two best friends are going to be the rulers of the Ghost Zone? How is that not a big deal!?" Tucker asked. "So when's the coronation?"

"We don't know yet," Sam told him.

"We'll have you at least told either of your parents about the big news?" Tucker asked.

"No!" They both yelled in unison.

"My parents are trying trying to get used to the revelation that I'm the same ghost they've been trying to capture for two years!" Danny said. "I'd hate to see their reaction if they were to find out I'm the new king of their sworn enemies!"

"And my parents would kill me if they found out I was marrying Danny" Sam added.

"Well, you're going to have to tell them sooner or later" Tucker pointed out.

"We know, but not right now" Danny said.

"I don't see why you're making such a big deal out of this" Tucker said. "Most people would kill to be in a position of power! Although, then again, you could end up like Princess Diana"

Sam punched him in the arm.

"Ow!"

While the trio were discussing the topic, they had no idea that an old enemy was planning his grand comeback; and this time, he wouldn't be pulling any punches.

**Alright, now things are starting to pick up. Next Chapter is the coronation and after that, things start getting real. There's n no turning back from here. No more "Should we or shouldn't we?". Next ttime on Danny Phantom: God Save The Queen**

**Anyway, that's all for today. If you enjoyed then please leave a review and I will see you next time. Have a nice day and peace out!**


	4. Long Live The King

God Save The Queen: Chapter 3

**A reviewer asked me a very important question and it reads:**_ Hey, money! I got a question. If Samantha Manson, who prefers to be called Sam, is to become the Queen of all Ghosts, shouldn't she be half-ghost, just like Danny, who is to become the new King of all Ghosts?_

**I'm glad you, asked, loyal reader. That issue is actually going to be a cause of conflict in an upcoming chapter so stay tuned.**

Being in space with only your thoughts to keep you company was enough to drive any normal man to insanity. Vlad Masters, however, was no normal man. The former world ruler had lost track of how much time he had spent in the empty abyss that was space. The only things keeping him from succumbing to madness were his fantasies of revenge. Deep down, he knew he had only himself to blame for his exile but he refused to accept that.

His pride wouldn't allow him to accept that fact that he was outsmarted by a 15 year old boy who didn't have nearly as much power and experience as he did. Vlad's subconscious continually mocked him, telling him how his greed has gotten the better of him and left him all alone. The loneliness turned to regret, regret turned to despair, and gradually the despair turned to anger that ate away at him day and night until finally reaching a boiling point.

It was time for Vlad to make his grand return.

After what seemed like an eternity, the time had finally arrived. The coronation/ wedding day had finally arrived. The stage had been set and it seemed like every ghost in the Ghost Zone was there for the ceremony. Danny was finishing up getting ready alongside Tucker while Jazz was helping Sam get prepared.

"Dude, you look like shit" Tucker noticed.

He wasn't wrong. Danny's skin seemed pale and there were bags under his eyes as if he hadn't slept in days. Danny didn't seem to be paying attention so Tucker grabbed a nearby bucket of water and threw it in Danny's face. That instantly snapped Danny out of his stupor.

"Huh?" Danny asked before shaking himself dry.

"Dude, snap out of it!" Tucker told him. "This is probably going to be the greatest day of your life! If anything, just forget about the ceremony and remember that you're marrying the girl of your dreams. The girl who's been your best friend since kindergarten!"

"That's exactly why I'm so anxious" Danny replied. "This is what I've been waiting for and I really don't want to screw up"

"Dude, you're not going to screw up" Tucker assured him.

Danny splashed some water on his face and smiled. The spark seemed to return to his eyes and he instantly seemed more energetic. Tucker was right, all of his worrying was for nothing; everything would be alright. Danny changed into his ghost form, but this time he wasn't wearing his usual jumpsuit. Instead he was wearing a black tuxedo provided to him by one of Amity's premier tailor.

Sam was faring a little bit better than Danny. While she was just as anxious and nervous, she didn't show it, mostly because she was feeling more joyful than anything. Her dress of choice was of course, signature black, and resembled the dress she wore to the school dance two years ago. She was caught up in thought right now, reflecting on her friendship with Danny and how far it had come.

She was interrupted from her thoughts when Jazz asked "So, how are you feeling?"

Sam looked up, smiled and replied "Like this is the greatest day of my life"

"Are you nervous at all?" Jazz asked.

Sam nodded her head, saying "I think if many heart's going to jump out of my chest of if I have to wait any longer"

"I don't blame you for feeling anxious" Jazz said. "This may be the most important day of your life"

A few minutes later, the bride and groom were ready for their ceremony. As they prepared to walk on stage, they were greeted by Clockwork.

"So, are you two ready?" Clockwork asked.

"More ready than we'll ever be" Danny said.

"That's good" Clockwork said before pulling out a silver and green stopwatch. "I thought I'd come by and give you two a wedding present,"

"What is it?" Sam asked.

"This is the Wacky Watch" Clockwork told them. "This allows you to turn back time a grand total of 24 times. Simply turn back the hands however long you want to turn back time and press the button on the top"

"Wow, thanks" Danny said, grabbing the stopwatch.

"You're welcome, I'll see you two out there in a few minutes" Clockwork said before departing through the curtain.

When the ceremony had begun, Danny and Sam had fully accepted their decision. They were no longer nervous and debating their decision. The lovers were now confident and prepared to take on their new responsibility as King and Queen of the Ghost Zone. A choir stood on the far right side of the stage. The crowd was whispered and murmured among themselves. Amongst the crowd were some ghosts Danny had formerly called enemies such as Poindexter, Ember, and Wulf. Even the Observants could be seen in the crowd. Some ghosts were excited at the idea of new rulers while others were unsure or downright terrified, having lived during the reign of terror by Pariah Dark and fearing a repeat. Clockwork stood before the soon to be new rulers, holding the Crown and the Ring in both hands. The two got down on one knee.

Clockwork raised his left hand to quiet the crowd. "Ladies and Gentlemen, as two lives are unified today, so is our world in which they will rightfully rule. Daniel Phantom and Samantha Manson, I call upon the both of you to swear upon your lives and vow to the Ghost Zone for an era of peace and prosperity"

Danny raised his head, lifted his right hand and said "I, Daniel James Fenton, solemnly promise and swear to govern The Ghost Zone and lead it to greatness. I swear to protect all citizens during my rule as King"

Sam raised her head, lifted her right hand and said "I, Samantha Ceras Manson, solemnly promise and swear to govern and protect all citizens of the Ghost Zone according to their respective laws and customs."

Clockwork then motioned for the two to stand to their feet before pulling out two golden scepters and handing them to the newlyweds.

"Daniel J. Fenton and Samantha C. Manson, by the power vested in me as the Spirit of Time, I declare you not only man and wife, but the King and Queen of the Ghost Zone!" Clockwork stated placing the Crown of Fire atop Danny's head and slipping the Ring of Rage on Sam's ring finger. The crowd stood and bowed before their new rulers, similar to the vision Danny had a few weeks ago.

The choir began to sing

'God save our gracious Queen! Long live our noble Queen! God save The Queen! Send her victorious, Happy and glorious, Long to reign over us: God save The Queen!'

Having officially been crowned, new King and Queen passionately kissed before sitting on their throne. The two smiled at their citizens, the royals, and anyone else in attendance.

After the ceremony, Tucker and Jazz congratulated them.

"What a beautiful ceremony," Jazz exclaimed, wrapping her arms around both of them.

"I always knew it would work out between you two" Tucker said, joining in on the group hug.

"Thank you" Danny said.

"So what do you say we celebrate with some fine wine?" Tucker suggested.

"Uh Tuck, you do remember we're still underaged, right?" Sam asked.

"Hey, Monarchs don't have to follow the rules, they make them" Tucker pointed out playfully.

The four of them laughed for a moment before Danny said "You and Jazz can head home, Sam and I will catch back up to you later. Right now, we're going to stay behind and see if there's anything else we need to do"

"Alright, I have a lot of paperwork I have to get started on anyway" Tucker said as he and Jazz climbed into the Fenton Speeder before departing.

Right now, things seemed to be going well but Danny was still worried. With this new power came new danger; not just for him but for his friends, family, and newlywed wife. Danny would do anything to keep her safe. She was his most prized possession and most importantly she was his.

The new king was right to be paranoid. Not everybody was happy about having a new king and they weren't going to just sit back without making their voices heard.

Rest and celebrate while you can, newlyweds for the peace and serenity won't last long.

**As the Rock would say: Finally… the lovebirds have tied the knot! Now that it's official and the ceremony has wrapped up, Danny and Sam can begin their reign. But of course, there's this pesky little thing called life that throws unexpected curveballs at you. **

**What's going to happen next? What's going to be Vlad's first move now that he's back on Earth? What's the first challenge our favorite couple will face?**

**Find out next time on DragonBall Z!**

**Eddie: Wrong series, Yadonushi.**

**Oh, yeah; that's right. Find out next time on God Save The Queen! As always, I've been Timothy D and have a great day! **

**Peter: What do you say we leave the reader with a preview of the next chapter**

**In the Next Chapter:**

_**Danny and Sam fought through the crowd of paparazzi, trying to gain a little separation. Finally Sam had had enough and snapped.**_

_**"Would it fucking kill you to give us a little privacy!?" Sam yelled and instantly the paparazzi backed off, except for one reporter.**_

_**He was tall and wore a brown fedora similar to the ones worn by journalists in the 1930s. His eyes were blue and his skin was slightly tanned. The man seemed so familiar to both of them yet they couldn't remember who he was. Danny was so caught up on trying to identify the man that he didn't even notice his ghost sense going off. **_

_**The reporter stepped forward and asked "If it isn't too much, Mr. Fenton, could I have a word?" before properly introducing himself "My name is Thaddeus Malik" **_


	5. Old and New Faces

**A/N: Before we get into this chapter, I'd like to thank all of you for your continued support. You guys make this so worth it. Expect more updates; I got out of school May 1st and as a result, I have a lot more free time on my hands to work on more chapters.**

GSTQ Chapter 4: Old and New Faces

Danny was about to head over to meet his queen. Before heading out, Danny looked out to see if their were any tabloids around. Danny didn't see any journalists but decided to go invisible just in case. Danny flew quickly when he felt his ghost sense going off. Danny turned around, looking for whatever ghost had decided to ruin his day but didn't see anything. Danny continued on his way, but couldn't shake the feeling that someone or something was following him.

Danny flew in through Sam's window and saw her brushing her hair in the mirror. Danny just stood invisibly and watched for a few minutes before he sneaked behind her, grabbed her by her waist and whispered "Boo!" in her ear.

Sam giggled and asked "How long were you standing there?"

"Only two minutes" Danny said as Sam playfully hit him with a pillow.

"Well I'm glad you're here, I was just planning our honeymoon" Sam said sarcastically.

"Ooh, can we go to St. Thomas?" Danny played along.

"Whatever you want dear" Sam replied before the two laughed.

"So what shall we do today, my queen?" Danny asked, bowing respectfully.

"I don't know, we can't exactly go anywhere without being spotted by annoying tabloids looking for their next big scoop," Sam said.

"Then I guess we'll have to just have our own fun" Danny said.

The newlyweds leaned in to kiss each other.

"Hey guys!" A voice greeted, causing them to stop dead in their tracks. They looked up and discovered that the familiar voice belonged to Danielle.

"Danielle, what are you doing here?" Danny asked, stunned by her sudden reappearance.

"I just came to congratulate you two on getting married" Dani said.

"How did you-" Sam started to ask.

"News travels fast among ghosts" Dani told her.

"What have you been up to since the last time we saw you?" Danny asked.

"Nothing really, just drifting around" Dani said.

"I hope you haven't had as much trouble with the news as we have" Sam said.

"Oh, I know how you feel" Dani said. "As soon as they found out I was your "cousin", I couldn't get a moment of peace"

Dani then asked "So how are you enjoying being rulers of an alternate dimension, your majesties?", bowing respectfully.

"We're only one day into our reign, I think it's a little too early to start talking about that" Danny said.

Danny, Sam, and Danielle did some catching up before deciding to go out. Despite their best attempts, the now royal couple was spotted by a group of reporters.

People seem to think that being a celebrity is easy. What's not to love about it? Being famous, having everything you could ever desire, and have the admiration of millions of people worldwide. As Danny and Sam could tell, it wasn't that easy. Fans trying to break up your relationship so they could take your place, big Hollywood agents and managers looking to extort you for everything you had, not to mention paparazzi annoying you at every waking moment.

As soon as the media first caught site of the exotic ring on Sam's hand, speculation started running wild. The biggest rumor was that the superhero had proposed to his longtime friend. Within only 24 hours, Amity Park's newspaper had already printed a story about the couple. Tucker, Danny, and Danielle saw the story and knew what would happen if Sam found out. Unfortunately, despite their best efforts to distract Sam, Sam caught a glimpse of the headline and predictably flipped out.

"Sam, wait!" Danny yelled as he grabbed Sam by her wrist to try and stop her as she stormed towards the news station. "Don't you think you're overreacting just little?"

"No! Since when is my, our personal life anyone's business but our own?" Sam asked angrily, almost literally dragging Danny along. "Well, I am going to do something about this right now!"

"What are you going to do?" Danny asked. "Tell the editor to remove the article or you'll smash his face against the photocopier?"

"Don't give me any ideas" Sam replied.

Danny grabbed Sam by her shoulders and spun her around. "Listen, I don't like this anymore than you do, but there's not much we can do about it. I mean, they're just doing their jobs."

"Even though they're a colossal pain in the" Sam said.

"Just be patient," Danny said. "I'm pretty sure all this attention will die down eventually"

Oh Danny, you really shouldn't tempt fate like that. Within the next 24 hours, the rumors of the lovebirds getting engaged had become worldwide news. Fan girls (and boys) went into despair, media outlets tried setting up interviews with the couple, wanting to find out if the rumors were true. Danny and Sam's Twitter pages were overrun with questions over the issue. Their respective fan clubs went crazy and entire forums were created regarding the question.

"And you said the hype would die down" said Sam sarcastically.

"I said eventually" Danny defended himself.

The couple had been caught off guard and were bombarded by journalists, tabloids, news anchors, and more, all trying to get the big scoop. This time, it was Danny trying to keep his cool, being tempted to just fire off a blast to get the pests to leave them alone. Dani and Tucker were watching from behind some bushes, snickering.

"Should we maybe try to help them?" Dani asked.

"No, they can handle this just fine" Tucker said. "Besides, this is way too funny"

"Mr. Phantom? Mr. Phantom?" One reporter cried out.

"Ms. Manson, could we get a word?"

"Is it true that the two of you are engaged?"

The constant flashing of cameras made it hard for the couple to see. Danny and Sam fought through the crowd of paparazzi, trying to gain a little separation. Finally Sam had had enough and snapped.

"Would it fucking kill you to give us a little privacy!?" Sam yelled and instantly the paparazzi backed off, except for one reporter.

He was tall and wore a brown fedora similar to the ones worn by journalists in the 1930s. His eyes were blue and his skin was slightly tanned. The man seemed so familiar to both of them yet they couldn't remember who he was. Danny was so caught up on trying to identify the man that he didn't even notice his ghost sense going off.

The reporter stepped forward and asked "If it isn't too much, Mr. Fenton, could I have a word?" before properly introducing himself "My name is Thaddeus Malik"

"Go ahead" Danny sighed.

"The world is curious, as to what Danny Phantom has been up to in his spare time" Thaddeus said. "You've been keeping out of the spotlight since the Disasteroid. What have you been doing?"

Frustrated and hoping this would get the media off his back, Danny said "I was trying to have a little vacation and spend some time with my family as well as enjoy time with my new wife"

"Wife? So the rumors are true?" Thaddeus asked.

Danny tried his bet to ignore Sam's death glare and answered "Yes, last week, Sam and I were got married at a small private wedding"

"Interesting, and what about your former enemies? Have they been causing any problems?"

"So far, no," Danny said "and hopefully it stays that way"

"Thank you for your time Mr. Fenton" Thaddeus said before turning to leave. As soon as he was out of sight, a sinister smirk formed on his face.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch- er, I mean the Ghost Zone.

"I can't believe this"

"What?"

"I mean, this whole King and Queen thing. I mean the queen isn't even half ghost"

"So?"

"So why is the Ghost Zone being partially ruled by a human?"

"Dude, just let it go"

"I can't let it go! It just doesn't make any sense!"

"So what are you going to do about it?"

"I don't know, but something's got to change about this"

"Gentlemen, I believe I have a solution to your problem" a voice said

**Next Chapter:**

"_**Okay, I'm getting a little sick of this" Sam said. **_

_**"You and me both" Danny agreed.**_

_**"So are you okay with what we're about to do?" Sam asked. **_

_**"I'm disappointed we didn't come up with this sooner" Danny said. **_

_**"Alright, then let's see if this'll get them to leave us alone" Sam said as she and Danny pulled out a pair of super soakers.**_

_**The two opened fire on the reporters. Much to the dismay of said reporters, the super soakers weren't loaded with water, but ink. Just as quickly as they had diverged on the couple, the reporters had dispersed. **_

_**###############################################################**_

_**Thaddeus listened closely, slowly following behind the couple as they made their way to their castle. He still couldn't believe that Danny Phantom had been made King of the Ghost Zone. The boy had spent most of his time fighting against ghosts. Still, Thaddeus needed to focus on what was important. He just needed to wait until the lovebirds were separated so he could make his move. **_

_**"Okay, I'll be right back, look out for anyone who could be a threat" Danny instructed Sam before going out on patrol. **_

_**Thaddeus decided that now was as good a time as ever but stopped and ducked when he saw a shadow approaching.**_

_**#############################################################**_

_**Danny hoped that he could find Sam in time. He was praying nothing had happened to her. He didn't know what he would do if she had gotten hurt. Finally he spotted her lying motionless on a barren rock.**_

_**"Tucker, Dani, I found her, come quick" Danny yelled. **_

_**Danny flew over and scooped her into his arms. Her body was still hot signifying that she had been burned, yet there wasn't a single scar or burn mark on her. Danny sighed a breath of relief when he saw that she was still, albeit barely, breathing. Tucker arrived in the Fenton Speeder shortly afterwards and Danny loaded her inside.**_

_**Sam began whimpering in pain. Unable to take the pain, she let out a scream. Her eyes opened wide, turning a neon shade of green.**_

_**"SAM!" All three of them screamed.**_

_**##########################################################**_

_**"Who did this to you?" Danny asked.**_

_**Barely conscious and still weak, Sam whispered "V-Vlad's back!"**_

_**And that's all for today. If you enjoyed then be sure to rate and review! I've been your gracious host, Timothy D and as always have a wonderful day!**_


	6. Sammy Specter Part 1

GSTQ: Sammy Specter Part 1

**Hello there loyal readers! First, I have a little bit of news regarding this story. The first 15 to 17 chapters are part of the first major story arc. The following 15 chapters will consist of Arc II. Overall, there should be at least 50 chapters in this story so stay tuned.**

Thaddeus smiled as he headed back to his house, pleased with the information he has just uncovered. Thaddeus was thankful that his cover wasn't blown. He could ill afford to be exposed just yet. Thaddeus would be sure to keep a close eye on the couple in the upcoming days.

Danny was having a wonderful day so far. For the first time in weeks, he finally had time to hang with his wife without having to worry about being pestered by the media. Following the bombshell announcement of his marriage to Sam, he was worried how Sam's parents would react. Fortunately, the longstanding grudge between the Fentons and the Mansons had almost completely died down. While his parents still didn't exactly see eye to eye with Sam's and vice versa, the hostility was now almost non existent.

Danny and Sam were not going to let this day pass them by. Even if all they could do was take a simple walk through the park, as long as they had some time to spend together alone, that was alright. The day went better than expected.

The day started with a trip to the book store at Sam's suggestion. Sam bought a book consisting of the works of Edgar Allan Poe while Danny decided to buy a book about space travel. The store owner thanked the duo for shopping at his store and even gave them a discount on their purchases.

The couple unexpectedly received a request from the children's hospital to visit a dying patient. Despite essentially having a day off, neither could say no to visiting a sick child. The child, an 8 year old boy named Eric, was ecstatic at getting a chance to meet his heroes. Meeting Eric only served to make Danny and Sam's day even better.

The visit to the hospital was followed by a trip to the Nasty Burger. Sam naturally had a salad while Danny ordered a cheeseburger. While they were eating, Danny tried getting Sam to eat meat.

"I'm not eating it!" Sam said.

"Come on, it's good for you" Danny said playfully, shoving the burger in Sam's face.

"Nothing you say or do can make me eat that," Sam said defiantly.

"A cow was killed to make this," Danny said. "Are you really going to let it die in vain?"

"Killed is putting it lightly," Sam replied. "Before being slaughtered, it was probably electrocuted and forcefully impregnated in order to produce more babies to be brutally slaughtered for various reasons. In addition to almost literally being drained of its milk to create dairy products. Oh, and before actually being killed, her reproductive organs were most likely multiplayer since she could no longer create children. In other words, the cow's death was drawn out and incredibly painful"

Danny's face sunk as he put the burger back on his tray and shoved it away. "Wow, way to kill my appetite"

"It's important that you know what goes into making your food" Sam replied. "I mean, you wouldn't eat a torture victim, would you?"

"I don't think I'm ever going to be able to eat another steak again" Danny said.

"Hmm, maybe I should tell Tucker what goes into making his precious meat" Sam proposed.

"Nothing" said Danny. "He loves eating meat way too much to give it up no matter what happens to the animals"

After a few more minutes concerning the fate of animals at slaughterhouses, Danny wanted to get his mind off the topic and so they left. Instead of eating animals, Danny decided to feed them by going to the park. The two tossed bread crumbs to the birds, which went slightly awry when Danny accidentally tossed a few bread crumbs in Sam's hair, resulting in the birds going into a feeding frenzy.

"Hey! Ow! Get off! Stupid birds!" Sam yelled, swatting at the birds as they pecked at her head. Meanwhile Danny was rolling on the ground laughing, tears rolling down his cheeks.

Sam returned the favor by "accidentally" dropping some crumbs in his hair. Naturally Danny wasn't very amused when the birds started pecking at his head.

The couple ended the day by going to their favorite spot: a small hill overlooking Amity Park which they referred to as the Lookout. The Lookout was especially beautiful at night when the moonlight and the bright city lights illuminated the night sly, making Amity Park look like a whole new world. The couple held hands as they looked over the city while reminiscing and reflecting on how much had changed in the two years since the Portal incident.

The couple were so caught up in their date that they didn't notice a certain reporter following them from afar. Thaddeus was listening in on their conversation, hoping to find out more about their personal lives when he heard something that really caught his attention.

"Are you okay?" Sam asked, noticing Danny seemed distracted.

"I'm fine, it's just funny" Danny said with a chuckle. "I went from loser who no one paid attention to, to the town's savior, to the world's savior, to finally the ruler over an alternate dimension populated by many of my former enemies"

"What on Earth is he talking about?" Thaddeus wondered. "Is he saying that he's the King of Ghosts now or something?"

Thaddeus would get his answer soon enough when he saw a tall, cloaked ghost approach the couple. Thaddeus stared and wondered who this figure was.

"My apologies for interrupting your date" Clockwork said. "But I couldn't allow you two to forget about your new duties as monarchs"

"Is something wrong?" Sam asked.

"There are a few vocal minorities who still haven't adjusted to having new rulers, but that's not too big of a problem" Clockwork informed them. "Come with me and I'll explain everything"

Thaddeus recorded everything and was prepared to record more when he saw the couple disappear into a swirling portal leading to the Ghost Zone. Thaddeus took everything in and quickly figured out that Danny and his wife had been named King and Queen of the Ghosts. This was a shocker in and of itself, but Thaddeus needed to find out more.

The Next Day

It seemed as if fans and media outlets had decided that Amity Park's most glamorous couple could only have one day to themselves because the very next day, it was a frenzy. As proof that no good deed goes unpunished, one magazine picked up on the couple's visit to Eric. The crowd seemed even crazier than usual, if that was even possible. The paparazzi was more annoying and tenacious than ever before to the point of shoving fans out of the way. In the ensuing frenzy, a young female fan was shoved to the ground and nearly trampled by the paparazzi.

Danny was quick to jump into action, shoving the paparazzi out of the way and lifting the young girl off the ground. The girl had a few bruises and scratches but seemed to be okay.

"Are you okay?" Danny asked the girl.

"I'm fine" the girl said, brushing the dirt off of her. "Thank you"

Danny gave the young woman an autograph before a gunshot rang out. The reporters, rather than ducking for cover like a normal person would do, turned in the direction of the gunshot. Danny did the same and saw two masked men holding bags presumably filled with cash carjacking a young man and driving off.

Danny thought maybe if he threw the dogs a bone, they'd leave him alone. Danny turned towards the camera, said his signature catchphrase "I'm going ghost!" before transforming into Phantom and giving chase to the robbers.

"Haha! Did you see the way that bank teller screamed when I waved the gun in her face?" The first robber laughed.

"I know, looked like she was about to piss herself!" The second robber replied.

The second robber was surprised when his accomplice suddenly stopped the car.

"Hey Rick, what's the big idea?" The robber asked before Rick turned and looked at him, revealing green eyes. "Oh shit!"

Two minutes later

"You know, I always wondered why criminals would rob a bank occupied by superheroes" Danny quipped as he carried the robbers to the awaiting police officers.

"Oh the answer's simple," replied Rick, "at least when you capture someone, you're generally nice about it."

"You saw it here first folks, Danny Phantom stopping a pair of dangerous robbers" One reporter said.

"Uh boss, you know we're not on the air, right?" The reporters assistant told him.

Danny took advantage of the reporters being distracted to return to Sam's side. Sam handed him a super soaker and whispered something in his ear.

"That's brilliant" Danny said, giving an uncharacteristically evil grin.

Pretty soon, the reporters had once again surrounded the couple.

"So now that you two are married, when are you going on your honeymoon?" One reporter asked.

"Is it true that you two are expecting your first child?" Asked another.

"Okay, I'm getting a little sick of this" Sam said.

"You and me both" Danny agreed.

"So are you okay with what we're about to do?" Sam asked.

"I'm disappointed we didn't come up with this sooner" Danny said.

"Alright, then let's see if this'll get them to leave us alone" Sam said as she and Danny pulled out a pair of super soakers.

The two opened fire on the reporters. Much to the dismay of said reporters, the super soakers weren't loaded with water, but ink. Just as quickly as they had diverged on the couple, the reporters had dispersed.

"Ugh, this camera cost $1700!" One newswoman complained.

"Just send us the bill!" Danny yelled back.

Dani then made her presence known by saying "Hey, I just got this dry cleaned!"

"Dani, what were you doing in the crowd?" Sam asked.

"I was trying to get to you guys" Dani said, as she tried to get the ink off of her outfit.

"Oh, sorry about getting ink all over you" Danny apologized.

"Don't worry about it" Dani assured him.

Just then a limo, pulled up and out stepped the mayor.

"Oh my God, you have no idea how busy I' e been these past few days!" Tucker said, wiping sweat off of his forehead. "So where are you guys headed?"

"We were about to go to the Ghost Zone to take care of some business" Sam said.

"Ooh, can we come to?" Tucker asked.

"Sure, we might actually need your help" Danny said.

The four were at FentonWorks in no time, standing before the Fenton Portal. The four climbed into the Fenton Speeder and headed off to the Clocktower. Just after they left, another figure entered the basement and followed them.

When they arrived at the Clocktower, Danny, Sam, Tucker, and Dani were greeted by Clockwork.

"Back so soon, your majesty? I thought you might be enjoying your honeymoon," Clockwork joked.

"You're starting to sound like those annoying reporters" Danny mused. "Yesterday, you told us that there was the possibility of a rebellion; could you elaborate?"

"Certainly," Clockwork said. "There are a few citizens of the Ghost Zone who aren't open to the idea of having a fully human Queen. For this reason, I think your wife may be in danger"

"What?!" Danny asked.

"Two weeks into our reign and there's already a rebellion," Sam said dryly.

"Sam!" Danny yelled.

"What?" Sam replied.

"This isn't funny," Danny told her. "You could very well be in danger of being killed"

"I don't have anything to worry about" Sam tried to assure him. "I've got you, don't I?"

Danny wasn't convinced and said "That's not the problem, there are dozens of ghosts who would have no qualms about killing you!"

"I'm still not worried" Sam said.

"How could you not be even a little scared?" Danny asked.

"Because," Sam said as she wrapped her arms around Danny. "I know you'd never let anyone hurt me"

"That's very sweet Samantha, but I agree with Daniel" Clockwork said. "There are too many dangers for you to be taking this situation lightly."

"Well how far are we from an uprising?" Danny asked.

"At the current moment, you have no need to worry" Clockwork said.

"See" Sam said to Danny.

"However, that is still no reason to take this lightly" Clockwork said. "With all due respect, your highness, you and Danny should return to your castle right now"

Heeding Clockwork's advice, Danny and friends left for Danny's castle. Thaddeus listened closely, slowly following behind the group as they made their way to Danny's castle. He still couldn't believe that Danny Phantom had been made King of the Ghost Zone. The boy had spent most of his time fighting against ghosts. Still, Thaddeus needed to focus on what was important. He just needed to wait until the lovebirds were separated so he could make his move.

"Wow, this is your castle?" Dani asked in amazement. "This place is huge!"

"Wait until you see the inside" Tucker said before attempting to go inside oh to be stopped by the guard.

"Halt! This is the residence of our glorious King and Queen," The guard said. "I am not permitted to allow you to enter unless I am instructed otherwise"

"Stand down," Danny told the guard. "They are close friends of mine,"

"Oh, why of course your majesty" The guard said, standing aside and bowing respectfully. "My sincerest apologies, I had no idea"

"Don't worry about it" Danny said. "Please escort my friends inside the premises"

"Yes, your majesty" The guard said as he and his companion escorted Dani and Tucker inside to give them a tour of the castle.

"You should go inside" Danny told Sam.

"Why?" Asked Sam.

"Because I'm about to go out on patrol to see if there's any suspicious activity" Danny informed her.

"I'll be fine," Sam said. "Don't go getting into any trouble"

"Can't make any promises dear" Danny said jokingly, giving Sam a quick kiss on the cheek.

"If you die, I swear to God I'll kill you" Sam threatened playfully.

"How are you going to kill me if I'm dead?" Danny asked rhetorically.

"I'll find a way" Sam replied.

"Okay, I'll be right back, look out for anyone who could be a threat" Danny instructed Sam before going out on patrol.

Thaddeus decided that now was as good a time as ever but stopped and ducked when he saw a shadow approaching.

Danny flew around the Ghost Zone, looking for any signs of trouble. He didn't see anything major happening at Walker's prison and Skulker's island seemed empty. Danny was prepared to leave when suddenly he heard a loud voice hell out "Beware!"

"I guess things were a little too quiet," Danny thought to himself before turning to confront the Box Ghost.

"Beware, Ghost King! Even though you are now the King of the Ghost Zone, I am still your greatest threat!" Box Ghost said, raising his arms menacingly.

"Keep believing that," Danny quipped. "Maybe one day it'll be true"

"Hey, it could happen" Box Ghost said with a sniffle.

"Yeah, dude whatever" Danny said.

"You know, I may be dead, but I still have feelings" Box Ghost said.

"Listen, Box Ghost; I really don't have time for this right now" Danny said. "What do you say we do this some other time?"

"Very well! I shall return to do battle with you one day soon! Beware!" Box Ghost screamed before flying away.

"I can't believe I left Sam to deal with this loser" Danny lamented before continuing his patrol over the Ghost Zone. "This would be much easier if I had the Infi-map"

Danny didn't run into too much trouble. Other than a few random ghost punks who were fooling around, there was nothing to suggest any trouble. Danny decided to return to his wife and friends and go back home.

Danny walked through his castle and down the corridors until he predictably found Tucker and Dani in the banquet hall. Danny immediately noticed that Sam was missing.

"Hey, where's Sam?" Danny asked.

"What are you talking about?" Tucker asked as he stuffed his face with a turkey leg.

"We thought she went with you" Dani said.

"Oh crap!" Danny exclaimed as he ran out of the castle with Dani and Tucker close behind. He ran into one of his royal guards, who was curious as to why he was so frantic.

"Your majesty, is something wrong?" The guard asked. "What is the cause of your panic?"

"Guard, where is my queen?" Danny asked.

"Forgive me, your majesty, but I thought she accompanied you on your journey" the guard said, shrinking away in fear.

"You guards had one simple job!" Danny yelled. "If my wife is hurt, you'll find yourself in critical condition!"

"Yes, your majesty. I shall gather the other guards and begin a search over the Ghost Zone" The guard said before scurrying away to gather the rest of the guards.

"Dani, Tucker, could you two help me find Sam?" Danny asked.

"Of course" Dani said.

"Great, take the Fenton Speeder and look everywhere," Danny told them. "Call me if you manage to find her"

"You can count on us" Tucker said before finishing his turkey leg.

Danny took off at break neck speed. His heart was nearly pounding out of his chest with worry. Sam's words started ringing in his head. "I don't have anything to worry about, I've got you, don't I?", "I know you'll never let anything happen to me.". How could he let this happen? If Sam was seriously hurt, Danny would never be able to forgive himself. Sam trusted him to keep her safe and he let her down.

Danny shook his head and tried to push all the negative thoughts out of his head. Worrying himself sick wouldn't help anyone. Danny looked around, scanning every inch of the surrounding area in the span of a second. Danny searched for over an hour, never giving up even as he started feeling exhausted.

Danny hoped that he could find Sam in time. He was praying nothing had happened to her. He didn't know what he would do if she had gotten hurt. Finally he spotted her lying motionless on a barren rock.

"Tucker, Dani, I found her, come quick" Danny yelled.

Danny flew over and scooped her into his arms. Her body was still hot signifying that she had been burned, yet there wasn't a single scar or burn mark on her. Danny sighed a breath of relief when he saw that she was still, albeit barely, breathing. Tucker arrived in the Fenton Speeder shortly afterwards and Danny loaded her inside.

"Is she alright?" Dani asked frantically.

"She's breathing but just barely" Danny told her. "That's not a good sign, she might die at any moment"

Sam began whimpering in pain.

"Sam, can you hear me?" Danny asked as he grabbed Sam's hand.

Sam began writhing in agony as if she were being torn apart from the inside out. Unable to take the pain any longer, she let out a scream. Her eyes opened wide, turning a neon shade of green.

"SAM!" All three of them screamed.

A green aura surrounded her as she started floating in the air.

"Whoa… is- is she a halfa?" Tucker asked.

"I don't know" Danny replied. That certainly appeared to be the case but how?

"D-Danny" Sam said weakly, reaching out to him before losing consciousness and collapsing.

"Tucker, get us home now! She's in bad shape!" Danny ordered.

Tucker didn't need to be told twice and floored the accelerator. Within half an hour, the four of them were back at FentonWorks. Sam was lying on a bed, a heart rate monitor keeping track of her heart beat. Danny sat on the edge of his seat next to her. He cursed himself for allowing this to happen. He knew accepting Clockwork's offer was a bad idea. Marrying Sam just made the decision even more foolish. Because of his choice, Danny had put his wife in danger.

Danny was relieved when Sam opened her eyes. She tried to sit up but pain and soreness quickly overtook her and she fell back.

"Don't try to move too much," Danny told her grabbing her hand once again. "You're in bad shape and really shouldn't be doing too much moving around,"

Sam smiled weakly and replied "Don't worry about me, I'll be fine"

Sam closed her eyes in pain again and took a deep breath as two purple rings formed at her waist and traveled up and down her body. Nothing really changed other than her eye color and her hair becoming a few shades darker.

"Did I just go ghost?" Sam asked.

"I'm afraid so," Danny said. "I don't know how but somehow you've been turned into a halfa"

Sam felt herself becoming lightheaded. Since she had just become a halfa a few hours ago, obviously she wasn't used to being in ghost form.

"Who did this to you?" Danny asked and Sam's eyes widened.

Barely conscious and still weak, Sam whispered "V-Vlad's back!"

**Next Chapter:**

_**Danny was surprised at how fast Sam was learning how to master her powers. In the span of a week, she had already perfected intangibility, a power that took Danny months to get down. Danny didn't know if it was because Sam was a fast learner/ prodigy or if it was her competitive nature. **_

_**Currently the two were in the middle of a sparring session. Dani helped out by occasionally interfering on Danny's behalf, giving Sam more of a challenge. Tucker acted as spectator, observing and taking down notes. Fists were flying so fast they appeared to be a blur and the couple managed to match each other blow for blow.**_

_**"Wow, this is starting to look less like a sparring session and more like a fight out of Dragon Ball Z" Tucker quipped.**_

_**Sam dodged a punch from Danny and kicked him in the chin. She then went invisible, flew behind Danny and shot him in the back.**_

_**"Impressive, you're learning quite quickly" Danny said.**_

_**"Well I do have the best teacher" Sam said, making Danny blush.**_

_**##############################################**_

_**"Vlad!" Danny yelled, trying to draw out the fruit loop. "Show yourself and I might kill you faster!"**_

_**"Is that anyway to greet an old friend?" Vlad yelled, emerging from the shadows.**_

_**"What are you doing back here?" Danny asked.**_

_**"Come now, Daniel, you didn't honestly think I would stay in the cold and barren outer space did you?" Vlad replied, a smug smile on his face. **_

**Anyway, that's it for today guys! Have a happy memorial day! Also if you have time, check out my friend LunaTheBlackWolf's stories if you have the chance. I will see you in the next chapter!**


	7. Sammy Specter Part 2

God Save The Queen Chapter 6: Sammy Specter Part 2

_Previously:_

_"Who did this to you?" Danny asked._

_"Vlad's back" Sam whispered._

The entire room fell silent upon Sam's revelation. They knew that it there was always a possibility of Vlad's return, but the violent nature of his return was a shocker. Danny was surprised that Vlad hadn't returned sooner.

"Vlad?" Danny asked, seeking reassurance. "Are you sure it's him?"

Sam nodded, saying "Red eyes, horn shaped hair, Dracula esque look; I'm pretty sure that's Vlad"

"You'd think after giving up everything in a foolish attempt at world conquest, Vlad would be smart enough to just stay out of our lives for good" Dani said.

"God forbid Vlad do something sensible for a change, make our lives easier" Danny snarked.

"So what are we going to do?" Tucker asked.

"We're not going to do anything" Danny said. "I'm going to hunt down that bastard, rip his head off with my bare hands, and mount his head on the walls of my castle"

"That's a little dark, don't you think?" Sam asked, having never seen Danny act this aggressive.

Danny realized he had a point and said "Jesus Christ, where did that come from?"

"Hey, nothing wrong with being protective over your wife" Tucker said. "I'd be pretty angry and out for blood to if someone harmed my queen."

Suddenly, Sam went intangible and fell through the bed to the floor.

"Ow! Pain, lots of pain!" Sam groaned after slamming hard onto the ground.

Danny quickly and gently picked her up and placed her back on the bed.

"Are you sure you'll be okay?" Danny asked her.

"I'll be fine," Sam said. "I just wish I could move without feeling overwhelming pain. So when do I start training?"

"It's still too early to be focusing on that" Danny told her. "Right now you just need to focus on healing"

"I beg to differ" Sam said.

When Danny turned around, Sam was floating above the bed.

"Oh man!" Danny exclaimed as he grabbed a cable and tied Sam to the bed by her ankle to keep her anchored. "Okay, on second thought, maybe we should start training as soon as possible."

"Hey, do you think you could get me down from here?" Sam asked, now floating upside down.

"Oh, this is going to be hilarious" Tucker said causing Sam to try blasting him with an ecto blast, failing miserably.

Now that she was a halfa, Sam had a new healing factor that allowed her to be up and walking again in no time. As soon as she was healthy again, training commenced. The first thing Danny taught her was how to control the ability to go intangible. The first few hours didn't go too smoothly as Sam found herself half submerged in the ground. After a while however Sam managed to get the hang of it and was walking through walls with ease. Sam's next lesson was in flying. Unlike intangibility, Sam got the hang of flying much more quickly.

Danny was surprised at how fast Sam was learning how to master her powers. In the span of a week, she had already perfected intangibility, a power that took Danny months to get down. Danny didn't know if it was because Sam was a fast learner/ prodigy or if it was her competitive nature.

Currently the two were in the middle of a sparring session. Dani helped out by occasionally interfering on Danny's behalf, giving Sam more of a challenge. Tucker acted as spectator, observing and taking down notes. Fists were flying so fast they appeared to be a blur and the couple managed to match each other blow for blow.

"Wow, this is starting to look less like a sparring session and more like a fight out of Dragon Ball Z" Tucker quipped.

"Come on, Kakarot, surely you can do better than that" Danny played along.

Sam dodged a punch from Danny and kicked him in the chin. She then went invisible, flew behind Danny and shot him in the back. Danny recovered quickly and attempted to blast Sam with eye beams but Sam threw up an ectoplasmic shield, deflecting the beams back at Danny, who just barely managed to dodge. Danny took advantage of Sam catching her breath by executing a spin kick on her.

"Did you just spin kick me?" Sam asked, grabbing her jaw.

"Yeah, I've always wanted to do that," Danny said.

"We'll do you think you could do it to an enemy next time?" Sam replied, still rubbing her jaw.

"Are you okay?" Danny asked, coming over to help.

"I'm fine, can't say the same for you though" Sam said with a smirk before catching Danny by surprise with a blast to the chest, sending him flying.

"Impressive, you're learning quite quickly" Danny said after recovering from the surprise attack.

"Well I do have the best teacher" Sam said, making Danny blush.

Dani tried to take Sam by surprise by grabbing her from behind but Sam grabbed her by the back of her hair and tossed her into Danny. Danny and Sam then charged at each other but stopped when they heard a bell ringing.

"Time's up!" Tucker announced happily.

The three halfas changed back into their human forms and sat down to catch their breath.

"I've got to hand it to you, you're quite cunning" Danny said. "Taking advantage of my concern to deliver a sneak attack"

"I have you to thank" Sam said.

"Did you two have to be so brutal?" Tucker asked. "I honestly thought you two were trying to kill each other for a minute"

"I guess we did get a little carried away" Danny admitted.

"So now that you're a halfa, what are we going to call you?" Dani asked Sam.

"What are talking about?" Sam asked.

"Well, Danny is known as Danny Phantom, I'm known as Dani Phantom; what's your ghost name?" Dani asked.

"I don't know" Sam said.

"How about Sammy Specter?" Danny suggested.

"I actually like the sound of that" Sam admitted.

"Danny Phantom &amp; Sammy Specter, that's adorable" Tucker noted.

"So are you up for another sparring session, Sammy?" Danny asked.

"You're on!" Sam declared.

The couple's second second sparring session got off to an explosive start, with Sam launching an explosive ectoplasmic ball at Danny. Danny immediately caught it and proclaimed "Looks like you dropped the ball" causing a collective groan from everyone at his terrible pun.

"You're going to pay for that pun" Sam said before throwing a series of punches at Danny.

Danny was quick enough to dodge every punch, but was caught off guard when Sam somersaulted behind him and elbowed him in the back. Danny shook off the pain and blindly fired an ecto blast at Sam. Sam actually managed to backhand and deflect the blast back in Danny's face. Danny took a deep breath as if he were about to unleash the Ghostly Wail, causing Sam to instinctively curl up and cover her ears to defend herself. Danny instead, used his ice powers to freeze Sam in a block of ice from the neck down.

"Ole!" Danny shouted before running up and kicking the frozen Sam like a soccer ball.

Sam broke out of her icy prison, and launched an attack of her own, but it seemed to have no effect on Danny.

Danny threw a series of ectoblasts at Sam. Sam instinctively threw up her hands to defend herself and was surprised when a wall of vines emerged to deflect the blasts.

"What was that?" Sam asked.

"It appears as if someone has just discovered their special ability" Danny said.

"My what?" Asked Sam, still confused.

"Every halfa has a unique ability or power," Danny explained. "For example, Dani's cryokinesis or my Ghostly Wail"

"So my special ability is control over plants? Cool" Sam said before trying out her new power by making a flower grow out of the ground and spit in Tucker's face.

"Hey! What was that for?" Tucker yelled, wiping goo off of his face.

"I needed to test it out on somebody" Sam said.

The rest of the day was spent helping San master her new power. Sam learned that she could grow vines from almost anywhere, including her body. Finally, all three halfas became too tired to continue training and reverted back to human form. Danny took Sam home and wished her a good night before heading home to catch some Z's. Out of the corner of his eye, however, he caught a glimpse of a familiar figure.

"Vlad!" Danny cried out, instantly regaining all his energy, turning around and chasing after the fruit loop.

Danny almost lost sight of Vlad in the darkness of night but fortunately managed to maintain sight of him. For the most part, it seemed as if Vlad had gotten faster from his time in space, but that didn't deter Danny who was determined to put an end to the pompous pest once and for all and kept right on his tail. Danny wondered where Vlad was leading him, knowing the possibility of being lead into a trap. He was about to get his answer when he saw Vlad fly into an abandoned storage facility overlooking the peer.

Danny wasted no time in following Vlad inside. The building was dark and filled with crates making it hard for Danny to see two feet in front of him, let alone Vlad. Danny's hand lit up and he began searching the empty building for his arch enemy.

"Vlad!" Danny yelled, trying to draw out the fruit loop. "Show yourself and I might kill you faster!"

"Is that anyway to greet an old friend?" Vlad yelled, emerging from the shadows.

"What are you doing back here?" Danny asked.

"Come now, Daniel, you didn't honestly think I would stay in the cold and barren outer space did you?" Vlad replied, a smug smile on his face.

"Honestly, no," Danny replied. "That would've made my life far too easy, wouldn't it?"

"Already so hostile and the fight hasn't even begun" Vlad mused.

"Well why don't we get the fight started so I can deal with you once and for all?" Danny proposed.

"Not just yet, I'm not in a fighting mood right now" Vlad said. "But don't get me wrong, it's so good to see you! What do you say we have a heart to heart?"

"You're a fool for coming back here" Danny told Vlad. "And you're an even bigger fool for attacking my wife"

"Oh yes, Miss Samantha" Vlad said. "You've been quite busy in my absence. I heard about how you and Samantha were crowned rulers of the Ghost Zone"

Vlad's tone turned venomous. "And for what, saving the world with a plan that a 3 year old could have come up with? Of all the people they could've crowned king, they chose you?"

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but weren't you the one who put both worlds in danger in the first place?" Danny reminded him. "Who in their right mind would make you king of anything?"

Danny smirked before finishing his statement with "Fruit loop"

Just as Danny expected, Vlad snapped. Vlad lunged at Danny who sidestepped him and kneed him in the gut. Vlad gasped and coughed up a little bit of blood. Danny didn't give him time to recover and punched him in the face, flooring the older halfa.

Vlad was quick however and rolled to the side, catching Danny off guard with a swift kick to the knee. Danny fell flat on his face allowing Vlad to kick him in the chest, sending Danny crashing into a pile of crates. Danny didn't stay down for long however and flew at Vlad, trying to attack. Vlad was fast enough to grab Danny by his arm and execute an arm drag. Danny instantly kipped up and tried a roundhouse kick, only for Plasmius to duck a elbow Danny in the back of his head. While Danny was dazed, Vlad executed a legsweep and kicked Danny's leg out from under him.

"How disappointing, you've gotten slower since the last time we fought" Vlad pointed out.

Danny ignored him and managed to take Vlad down with a spear. The two rose to their feet and exchanged lefts and rights. Danny dodged a crucial left from Vlad and delivered an absolutely brutal right handed haymaker to Vlad. Vlad staggered back, allowing Danny to hit him with a roundhouse kick. Vlad dropped to one knee but surprised Danny with a back elbow to the ribs followed by an ecto blast to the chest. Danny was sprawled out on the floor but quickly recovered and hit Vlad with an ecto blast of his own. Vlad fell to the floor and Danny descended upon him, landing a hard punch to the face. Danny was about to deliver another when Vlad raised his legs and kicked him in the chest. The two stared at each other before, panting and catching their breath.

"I must admit, you've gotten better than I expected" Vlad said before the alarm on his watch went off. "I'd love to stay and fight, but I have more important matters to attend to"

With that said, Vlad disappeared, leaving Danny standing in the abandoned building. Danny knew this wouldn't be the last time he would cross paths with the madman and that the two would encounter each other pretty soon. Still, that didn't stop him from being pissed at being unable to finish off his enemy. For right now, though, it was getting late and Danny needed some sleep.

The next day, Danny continued training with Sam, teaching her how to maintain more control over her powers. While she was generally well versed in using her powers, there were still occasions where she lost control. Danny launched a series of ecto balls at Sam, with Sam summoning a vine and deflecting each shot. Sam noticed that Danny seemed distracted, having a faraway look in his eye.

"Danny, are you okay?" Sam asked.

"I'm fine" Danny said, with a smile. "Can't say the same for you though"

Danny caught Sam by surprise by flying over to her at break neck speed and grabbing her. Sam summoned four vines from the ground, which proceeded to wrap around Danny's arms and legs, leaving him restrained. Danny struggled to break free but Sam's vines were too strong.

"I know when you're lying to me" Sam said. "Tell me what's bothering you!"

"Nothing's bothering me!" Danny insisted. "Now let me go!"

"Not until you tell me what's got you so worried" Sam said.

"I'm not worried" Danny yelled.

"Fine, don't say I didn't warn you" Sam said before she began tickling Danny's ribs.

"Hahahahaha Sam stahahahap" Danny screamed, bursting into laughter.

"Not until you tell me what's bugging you!" Sam said.

"Ahahaha I told you there's haha nothing bothering mehehehe" Danny giggled, squirming helplessly.

"You might as well tell me now" Sam told him. "You know how persistent I can be"

"I'm not telling you!" Danny said in between laughter.

"Alright, you leave me no choice" Sam said before rolling up Danny's shirt and blowing into his belly button, simultaneously wiggling her fingers in between his ribs.

"Aahahahahaha Okay okay I'll hahahaha talk hahaha mercy!" Danny screamed.

Sam gave Danny a couple of seconds to catch his breath.

"You're evil, you know that?" Danny said with a smile, panting.

"I know," Sam said, smiling back at him. "I'm more terrifying than any of your enemies. Now talk"

"Alright," Danny surrendered. "After I walked you home last night, I ran into Vlad. After fighting for a few minutes, he disappeared saying he had something more important to attend to. I know he's up to something but I don't know what."

"And you felt that it would be wise to not tell me?" Sam asked.

"Well yeah" Danny said. "I don't want you getting involved in this conflict any more"

"You do remember that bastard is the person who did this to me, right?" Sam reminded him. "He's now my enemy as well as yours. And besides, when I became your wife, all of your enemies became my enemies"

"Sam, you don't need to get into this any further" Danny tried persuading her.

"Danny, even if I didn't want to get involved, I don't think I have a choice. Vlad will probably come after me just to get to you" Sam pointed out. "This isn't just your fight anymore, it's our fight"

Danny knew that arguing with her would be pointless and just let it go. And just in time to as Tucker arrived, holding what appeared to be a costume.

"Hey guys, what's up?" Tucker greeted them before noticing Danny's predicament. "And why is Danny all tied up?"

"Uh, no reason" Danny said, trying to come up with an explanation to prevent the situation from becoming even more awkward.

"Just a sparring session that got a little bit out of hand" Sam explained, releasing Danny from her vines.

"What's that in your hands?" Danny asked.

"Say hello to the new Sammy Specter costume" Tucker said, pulling out the costume for them to see.

The costume consisted of a black long sleeved shirt that cut off at the midriff, a black miniskirt with neon green stripes, and black leggings. There was a neon green "S" stylized like Danny's logo on the front of the top.

"Wow, this is amazing Tucker, did you make this?" Sam asked.

"As a matter of fact I did, remember last year when I took that sewing class-" Tucker said before realizing what he was confessing to and trying to recant his statement. "I mean, no, I had my tailor make it!"

"Hey, there's no shame in knowing how to sew" Danny said.

"I'm telling you I didn't" Tucker said before realizing it was pointless trying to defend himself. "Well, are you going to try it on?"

"Of course I am," Sam said, "but I'm not changing in front of you two"

"Oh come on, I'm your husband" Danny said, shooting Sam a perverted grin.

"You'll get to see more later, just not right now" Sam replied. "Now wipe that smirk off your face before I do it for you"

"Alright, alright" Danny said, throwing his hands up as Sam headed inside to change.

"So… about earlier" Tucker started to ask.

"Nothing happened!" Danny yelled, hoping Tucker would just let it go.

A few minutes later, Sam came back in her ghost form wearing her new costume.

"Wow, this feels amazing! You did a great job" Sam complimented Tucker.

"Glad I could provide some assistance" Tucker said before turning to leave. "Now I'll leave you two alone so you can have another "sparring session"," Tucker barely managed to sidestep duel ectoblasts. "Okay, okay I'm leaving!"

**Next Chapter:**

_**After a few more days of training, Danny was convinced Sam was ready and prepared. Just to make sure however, Danny was taking her out on patrol with him. Danny wondered how Amity Park would react to news of yet another halfa. The two hadn't heard much from Vlad since Danny's last encounter with him. Danny was still worried about what Vlad's ultimate plan was and made sure to keep on his toes.**_

_**#####################################**_

_**"What are you doing back here?" Skulker asked. "After the stunt you pulled, you're an outcast in both the human and ghost community"**_

_**"Why is it that everyone seems to hold a grudge?" Vlad asked sarcastically. "I merely came to talk"**_

_**"There's nothing to talk about!" Skulker replied. "Get out of here before I throw you out!"**_

_**"Just hear me out" Vlad pleaded. "I know you're not exactly happy over Danny Phantom being made King, are you?"**_

_**Skulker stopped and decided to let Vlad speak. "Go on" he said.**_

_**"You never managed to catch the Ghost Boy" Vlad reminded him. "Throughout your life as well as unlife, no prey managed to escape you… that is until Danny Phantom came along. Are you really willing to let your reputation go down the drain as the Greatest Hunter of All Time just because Danny Phantom is now King?"**_

_**Skulker remained silent before pointing towards the exit and saying "Go!".**_

_**"Alright, I'll leave" Vlad said as he turned and made his exit. He smirked as he departed knowing that it would only be a matter of time before Skulker came back to him.**_

_**############################################**_

_**"Danny, you might want to get down here and quick!" Dani informed him.**_

_**"What's going on?" Danny asked.**_

_**"It''s something you have to see to believe!" Dani said. "Come quickly!"**_

**That's all for today, guys. If you liked the story, then be sure to leave a review. We are almost at the midway point for the first story arc. Tune in to see what happens next. As always, I've been Timothy D and have a wonderful day!**


	8. Two Old Enemies

GSTQ Chapter 7: Two Former Enemies

"Come on, my grandmother can do better than that!" Sam taunted Danny as she gracefully dodged each and every one of his shots.

"Oh please, I'm not even trying" Danny replied.

"Less taunting, more fighting please!" Tucker yelled at them.

He and Dani were sitting on the sidelines in lawn chairs, watching the two have yet another sparring session. Tucker had a big bag of popcorn is his hand.

"Hey, are you going to share those?" Dani asked.

"You know, with the passion they have for fighting each other, I wonder if they're substituting fighting for something else," Tucker suggested, earning him a slap to the back of the head from Dani.

"Stop being a pervert" Dani scolded him.

"I'm just saying" Tucker defended himself.

Danny seemed to be on the losing end. Although he was getting a few good hits in, it was quite apparent that he was taking far more damage than Sam. Fortunately, Danny had an idea that he hoped would turn things around. Danny created two duplicates of himself and attacked Sam.

Sam instantly went on the defensive, struggling to find the real Danny as well as fight back. Every time she went to attack one Danny, another would sneak around attack her.

"And Danny uses the duplicate technique, what a maneuver" Tucker commented.

"This fight is getting brutal folks" Dani added.

Danny's duplicates held Sam by her arms allowing Danny to punch her multiple times.

"Oh, come on; this is despicable; she's defenseless" Tucker said, acting as a wrestling commentator.

Sam broke free by head butting the real Danny and then elbowing the two duplicates in the stomach.

"Not completely defenseless" Dani observed.

Tucker noticed Danny was taking a deep breath and said "And you better get the ear plugs ready, folks; Danny looks ready to finish this!"

"That's right, Danny's setting up for the Ghostly Wail" Dani said.

Sam was prepared however and thwarted Danny's attempted simply wrapping her vines around his mouth, preventing him from using his ultimate attack. She then sent Danny flying with a vicious right hand. Danny bounced back and took Sam down with a judo throw. The two states each other in the eye before deciding to end their sparring session for today.

"Good job, today" Danny complimented Sam.

"Thanks," Sam replied. "You didn't do half bad yourself"

"A little bit more training and you'll be ready to fight ghosts in no time," Danny told her. "Speaking of ghosts, I think it's about time we return to our kingdom"

"I couldn't agree more" Sam said.

The two faced each other to their castle, leaving Dani and Tucker far behind as they sped through the Ghost Zone. In the end, Danny ended up beating Sam by a hair.

"The only reason you won is pure luck" Sam said, playfully.

"I leave luck to Heaven" Danny replied. "But losing to me is nothing to be ashamed of. At least you lost to the best there is"

"Are you up to a rematch on our way back?" Sam challenged him.

"I guess you haven't suffered enough losses today" Danny replied.

Just then, Dani and Tucker pulled up in the Fenton Speeder.

"Would it have killed you to be wait for us?" Asked Tucker.

"Sorry" the two sheepishly apologized. "We just got a little bit caught up in our competition."

Not long after their arrival, Danny and Sam's guards had arrived on the scene to escort the royal couple inside.

"Welcome back, your majesties" The new head guard greeted, bowing at the pair's feet. "Has the queen made a full recovery from the brutal attack?"

"I've made more than a full recovery" Sam informed him, lighting an ecto ball to demonstrate her new powers, surprising the guard.

"Your Majesty, are you now a ghost like the rest of us?" The guard asked.

"Actually, I'm only half ghost, like my husband" Sam said.

"Either way, this changes nothing" the guard assured the two. "We shall do our best to keep you and the King safe from anyone or anything that wishes to cause you harm"

"I've very glad to hear that, Sir-" Danny said, pausing so the guard could give him name.

"Jonathan" The guard gave him name.

"Well then I'm very glad to hear that, Sir Jonathan," Danny said. "Are you familiar with Vlad Plasmius?"

"Of course, your Majesty" Jonathan replied. "He is the man who nearly caused the destruction of both worlds, how could I forget him?"

"I'm glad to hear that," Danny said. "Plasmius has made his return to Earth and is scheming something big. I'm putting a bounty on him, I want him captured so be on the lookout for any suspicious persons."

"Yes, your majesty" Jonathan said. "I shall inform the other guards"

Having given his soldier his orders, Danny and Sam went inside their castle. The two talked with a few of their governors regarding a possible rebellion. The governors insisted that they would take care of any group seeking to overthrow the couple. After a few more meetings, the couple returned home.

After a few more days of training, Danny was convinced Sam was ready and prepared. Just to make sure however, Danny was taking her out on patrol with him. Danny wondered how Amity Park would react to news of yet another halfa. The two hadn't heard much from Vlad since Danny's last encounter with him. Danny was still worried about what Vlad's ultimate plan was and made sure to keep on his toes.

Today looked like it was going to be a peaceful day. No crime, no ghost attacks, just peace and quiet. Danny was feeling a bit disappointed that things were so tranquil. He was to the point of wishing for something to happen just to alleviate the boredom. He was about to get his wish.

"Help! Somebody, help!" Someone cried out.

"Come on, let's go!" Danny said to Sam, flying to the scene.

The cry for help had come from a six story apartment building that had gone up into a raging inferno. Firefighters were at the scene, but didn't seem to be able to combat the fire.

"What's the situation?" Danny asked.

"There are 6 people trapped inside that building and we can't get to them," the chief firefighter explained. "We fear the building is on the verge of collapsing."

"Don't worry, we'll get everybody out in time" Sam assured the firefighter.

"What can you possibly do? You're only human like us" another firefighter said.

"Yeah, about that" Sam said before transforming into her ghost form.

"Wait a minute, you're a half ghost to?" The chief asked. "But how?"

"Look, how she became a half ghost isn't important" Danny reminded him. "Do you want to save these people or not?"

"Please!" Cried a young woman. "My 4 year old son is trapped in there, please get him out of there!"

"Don't worry, we'll save him" Danny said.

"I'll take the lower floors, you take the upper floors" Sam said.

"Got it!" Danny said before the two hurried to save the people trapped inside.

On the first three floors, Sam located the first 3 civilians, all trapped on the third floor. Sam quickly grabbed all 3 of them and flew out of the building. The civilians had suffered minor second degree burns and had fallen unconscious due to smoke inhalation. Sam quickly dropped them off with paramedics before going back inside to see if she could provide Danny any assistance.

Danny had managed to find the missing boy. He had a few burns, and his clothes were covered in soot, but he appeared to be otherwise okay. Danny calmed the boy down, telling him that everything was going to be okay. Danny kept looking for the remaining civilians, finding one on the fifth floor. Meanwhile, Sam had managed to find the last person trapped in an elevator. Sam grabbed her and flew outside, meeting up with Danny.

"Is that everyone?" The chief asked.

"That's everyone" Danny told him.

"Thank you so much for saving my baby" the mother thanked the two as she grabbed her son and pulled him into a tight embrace.

Danny and Sam had managed to get all the people out of the building just in the nick of time. No sooner than 2 minutes after saving the last person, the apartment building collapsed in a ball of flames.

"Thank God you two got here when you did," the chief said. "Who knows what would've happened if you or how many people would've died had you not showed up"

"All in a day's work" Danny replied.

A news team wasted no time in crowding the couple, and asking questions regarding Sam's new status as a Halfa.

"So, Ms. Samantha," A news anchor said before noticing Sam's death glare. "I mean, Ms. Manson, it would appear as if you've become a half ghost. How long have you been a half ghost and how?"

"I've only been a Halfa for about three weeks now" Sam told her. "As for how I obtained my powers, I was involved in a freak accident so to speak"

Naturally, neither Danny or Sam wanted to explain the true reason behind her powers.

"Well now that you're a Halfa, what do you plan on calling yourself?"

"Sammy Specter" Sam said quickly.

"You saw and heard it here first, folks; Amity Park's favorite power couple Danny Phantom and Sammy Specter" the news anchor reported before surprisingly leaving the two in peace.

####################################

Skulker was going through something akin to a mid unlife crisis. Just like his nemesis Danny Phantom, he struggled with boredom. Skulker sat in his lair, updating his battle armor and cleaning his knives, trying to come up with something to do. What was a hunter to do without a suitable prey. He could go back to bounty hunting for Walker, but Skulker found those jobs too easy. The only true worthy adversary for him was the Ghost Boy, and in these times of peace he had agreed not to attack him. Even though he almost always lost, it was the thrill of the chase that made his fight with the Ghost Boy so exciting.

Skulker quit reminiscing and got back to work on his suit. He was interrupted when he heard someone enter. Swearing under his breath about needing to update his booby traps, Skulker was surprised to see his former employer standing before him.

"Upgrading your equipment once again, I see" Plasmius said. "Old habits die hard, I guess"

"What are you doing here?!" Skulker asked furiously, prepared to shoot Plasmius with his arm blaster.

"Wait!" Plasmius yelled, defensively throwing up his arms. "Can't an old friend just stop by for a hello?"

"What are you doing back here?" Skulker asked. "After the stunt you pulled, you're an outcast in both the human and ghost community"

"Why is it that everyone seems to hold a grudge?" Vlad asked sarcastically. "I merely came to talk"

"There's nothing to talk about!" Skulker replied. "Get out of here before I throw you out!"

"Just hear me out" Vlad pleaded. "I know you're not exactly happy over Danny Phantom being made King, are you?"

Skulker stopped and decided to let Vlad speak. "Go on" he said.

"You never managed to catch the Ghost Boy" Vlad reminded him. "Throughout your life as well as unlife, no prey managed to escape you… that is until Danny Phantom came along. Are you really willing to let your reputation go down the drain as the Greatest Hunter of All Time just because Danny Phantom is now King?"

Skulker remained silent before pointing towards the exit and saying "Go!".

"Alright, I'll leave" Vlad said as he turned and made his exit. He smirked as he departed knowing that it would only be a matter of time before Skulker came back to him.

####################################

"Hey guys!" Tucker greeted his friends.

Judging by the big grin he had on his face, Danny and Sam could tell he was up to something.

"Okay, what are you planning?" Sam asked.

"What?" Tucker feigned innocence.

"You're up to something, we know it" Danny said.

"Okay, how would you feel about having your life adapted into a movie?" Tucker asked Danny.

"Dude, I have enough media coverage already; I don't need a movie about my life just yet" Danny said.

"Oh, come on, we'd be set to make millions" Tucker tried to persuade them. "Danny could be played by Liam Neeson, Sam could be played by Mila Kunis, and I could be played by Samuel L. Jackson"

Sam ignored Tucker's last comment and pointed out "Millions of dollars doesn't automatically make your life easier"

"Well, Princess; not everyone grew up wealthy like you" Tucker retorted.

"That's Queen to you" Sam replied.

"Don't let the power go to your head, "your majesty"" Tucker jokingly mocked her.

"You dare disrespect my queen?" Danny joined in on the fun. "One million years, dungeon!"

The three laughed before Danny got a call on his cell phone.

"Hello?"

"Danny, I need your help, now" said Dani. She seemed frantic and in desperation.

"What's happening, are you in trouble?" Danny asked

"Let's just say you might want to get down here and quick!" Dani informed him.

"What's going on?" Danny asked.

"It''s something you have to see to believe!" Dani said. "Come quickly!"

Before Danny could ask any other questions, the call ended. Danny was quick to transform into his ghost form so he could give Dani assistance.

"What's the matter?" Tucker asked.

"It's Danielle, I think she's in trouble" Danny informed his friends as he turned to fly away.

"Wait, let me come with you" Sam said as she transformed to assist Danny.

The two took off at light speed to help Dani with whatever the problem was. They quickly tracked her down and found her being pummeled by some figure. Despite all her best attempts at fighting back, every punch Dani threw was dodged leaving the young Halfa open for a counterattack. Danny quickly knocked the figure aside before checking on Dani. The girl was covered in bruises and her face was a bloody mess.

Danny turned to confront Dani's attacker while Sam gave first aid to Dani. Danny took a good look before noticing what they were wearing. A black and red-armored suit and standing on a silver flying board.

"Valerie?" Danny asked.

Valerie didn't answer and instead attacked Danny. Danny avoided a left hand, but was unwilling to fight back against Valerie. Valerie took advantage of his hesitance and punched him in the mouth. Danny wiped the blood from his mouth and evaded every one of Valerie's attacks while still refusing to fight back.

"What's this about?" Danny asked ducking and flying behind Valerie. Once again, Valerie refused to give a response causing Danny to realize something was wrong with her.

Valerie surprised Danny by shooting Danny in the shoulder with a blaster and attempting to slash him with a hidden dagger. Danny managed to avoid being critically wounded, but the dagger left a nasty gash on his left arm. Danny flew back a little bit to recuperate as Valerie moved in to continue the attack. Before she do anything, however, she was blasted aside by Sam. Valerie was dazed for a couple of seconds but shook off the effects and tried to attack Sam, who seemingly proceeded to knock her out with one blow.

"Sam? What are you doing?" Danny asked, trying to calm Sam down.

"Keeping her from hurting you," Sam said, a berserker rage in her eyes.

"We can't fight her" Danny told her. "There's something wrong with her"

"I don't care what her problem is, nobody attacks my husband or friends and gets away with it" Sam said. "Don't worry, I won't hurt her"

Valerie came back for more and Sam instinctively shot a non lethal blast at her head. The shot knocked Valerie's helmet off her head. For the first time in the entire fight, Valerie spoke.

"Help me" she pleaded, taking Danny and Sam off guard before going back on the attack.

"Did she just say "help me"?" Sam asked, confused, avoiding Valerie's dagger.

"I think she did" Danny said.

"Help me" Valerie pleaded again while seemingly taking another shot at the power couple. "I'm not in control. The suit's got a mind of it's own"

"Okay, so now we've got another problem, how do we remove the suit without hurting her?" Sam asked.

"I don't know, but we're going to have to find a way" Danny said.

"Why don't we just rip the suit apart piece by piece" Dani suggested.

"That's a good idea, but the problem would be getting close enough to do so without getting seriously hurt by Valerie's assault" Danny pointed out.

"One of us could act as a distraction while the others dismantle the suit" Sam suggested.

"I'll be the distraction" Dani volunteered.

"You're already pretty banged up, we don't need you getting any more hurt" Danny said.

"I'll act as the distraction, you two focus on the suit" Sam said before flying off to draw Valerie's attention.

While Sam distracted Valerie, Danny flew over and ripped off her hand. Dani did the same to her left leg. Bit by bit, the two worked together until the only thing left of Valerie's battle armor was a heap of metal. When the battle armor was dismantled, a familiar spirit manifested himself from the pieces.

"Technus, why am I not surprised?" Danny commented sarcastically.

"Yes, it is I Technus, master of all technology-" Technus said before Danny, Sam, Dani, and Valerie all interrupted him by saying "Just get on with it!"

"Fine, I was ordered to take out the brat and decided the easiest way to do so would be by using this girl's suit as a vessel. When you two came along, I figured I might as well kill two birds with one stone" Technus explained.

"That's all we need to know" Danny said before sucking up Technus in the Fenton Thermos.

Vlad was certainly back and he had already manipulated one of Danny's former enemies. Danny had a bad feeling things were about to go to hell.

**In the Next Chapter:**

_**"Your majesties, there is somebody here who wishes to speak to you" Jonathan told the two.**_

_**"Send him in" Danny ordered. **_

_**"Sure thing, your majesty" Jonathan said, bowing respectfully and welcomed in the visitor. **_

_**Much to the couple's surprise, the visitor was none other than the Ghost Zone's self appointed law enforcer, Walker.**_

_**"Walker?!" Danny exclaimed. **_

_**Walker quickly tried to calm down Danny and assure him he meant no harm.**_

_**"Don't get too worked up, I'm not here to start any trouble" Walker said.**_

_**"Then why are you here?" Sam asked him.**_

_**"Because, I know you both have heard about the possibility of a rebellion" Walker said. "It would be foolish for me to try and prosecute either of you, seeing as you're the only people who can maintain order in the Ghost Zone"**_

_**Walker continued "I'm here to inform you that if you need any assistance with dealing with the rebels, my men are at your disposal"**_

_**##############################################**_

_**"So I take it you're part of Vlad's rebellion too?" Danny questioned the hunter.**_

_**"I'd never go back to working for that slimy bastard, I'm doing this on my own and for me only" Skulker told him.**_

_**"Why?" Danny asked.**_

_**"I never did succeed in my goal of catching the rare prey that is a human-ghost hybrid," Skulker said "My reputation as the Greatest Hunter Dead or Alive hinges on this"**_

_**"Why don't you just hunt Vlad?" Danny replied. "He's also a human-ghost hybrid and you have reason to hunt him"**_

_**"I already told you, I don't ever want to have to deal with that bastard again" Skulker said.**_


	9. One More Fight

God Save The Queen, Chapter 8: One More Fight

Mayor Tucker, after finishing and filing all paperwork as well as more of his obligated duties, had earned a full day off. What better way to spend it than by annoying his two best friends. Danny and Sam's day off was going great. They took a break from rigorous training and planned on spending the day together.

They met up together at the park where they just so happened to run into Tucker. Suffice to say, the duo were quite surprised.

"Tucker, what are you doing here?" Danny asked.

"I finally have a full 24 hours to myself so I decided to hang out with you guys" Tucker stated.

"But you've been hanging out with for the past 3 days, what makes this any different?" Sam asked.

"I get to spend the whole day with you guys," Tucker said, a huge smile on his face.

"That sounds like fun, but Sam and I were going to spend the day together and go on an actual date rather than train" Danny told him.

"But you can do that any day, this is my only day off, please can I hang out with you guys?" Tucker pleaded.

Sam and Danny were going to protest but Tucker gave them the puppy dog eyes. Tucker had perfected the puppy dog eyes to combat Sam's death glare and right now it was working like a charm.

"Fine, you can come" Danny and Sam sighed.

"Oh, thank you so much" Tucker said, throwing his arms around both of them.

Danny had an annoyed look on his face as if he was ready to punch Tucker in the face. Tucker suggested first that they play some video games just like old times. The three went back to their favorite game, Doomed. Tucker trolled Danny and Sam by pausing and unpausing the game repeatedly, stealing their weapons and attacking them with friendly fire. It got to the point where Danny had to physically restrain Sam to keep her from mauling the techno geek.

"Calm down, it's just a game" Danny told her, struggling to hold her back.

"Well tell him to quit fooling around and actually play the game!" Sam yelled back while Tucker sat with an innocent look on his face.

"Geez, I didn't know it would bother you that much," Tucker replied. "I was just having a little fun"

Danny and Sam got a small break from Tucker when he went to take a bathroom break.

"Are you sure it was a good idea giving up our date and allowing him to hang out with us?" Sam asked Danny.

"Oh come on, Tucker's our friend. Sure he can be annoying at times, but if we just keep our cool, we'll barely notice him" Danny promised her.

Then the two of them heard a crash coming from Danny's room. The two tossed their controllers aside and rushed to Danny's room to discover the cause of the crash. What the saw was Tucker standing awkwardly beside a model space shuttle that was lying in pieces on the floor.

"What did you do?!" Danny asked frantically. "You were just supposed to be using the bathroom!"

"I was going to take back the holographic watch you borrowed from me" Tucker said.

"You could've just asked me for it!" Danny yelled, his eyes going green. Danny looked as if he were about to throttle Tucker. "I worked on that rocket for six months!"

This time it was Sam restraining Danny to keep him from mauling the techno geek.

"Just remember if we keep cool, we'll barely notice him" Sam quipped.

Just when Danny was about to blast Tucker, he was interrupted by a voice.

"Your majesties, I do hope I'm not intruding"

Danny, Sam, and Tucker turned their heads to see Jonathan standing before them.

"Jonathan, what are you doing here?" Danny asked.

"Well the Observants came by the castle looking for you and the Queen," Jonathan reported. "They said you two needed to spend more time thinking of a way to stop the rebellion rather than spending so much time in the human realm"

"You know, the Observants always get so worried about everything but never seem to make an effort to solve the problem" Danny noted as he and Sam departed back to the Ghost Zone.

After they left, Tucker breathed a sigh of relief.

When Danny and Sam arrived at their castle, they found The Observants were nowhere to be found. The two sat in the conference room, hoping maybe they'd come back. To say they were irritated would be an understatement. The Observants had sent their messenger to find them yet were nowhere to be found when they came to meet them. However they would soon be met by an unexpected visitor.

"Your majesties, there is somebody here who wishes to speak to you" Jonathan told the two.

"Send him in" Danny ordered.

"Sure thing, your majesty" Jonathan said, bowing respectfully and welcomed in the visitor.

Much to the couple's surprise, the visitor was none other than the Ghost Zone's self appointed law enforcer, Walker.

"Walker?!" Danny exclaimed.

Walker quickly tried to calm down Danny and assure him he meant no harm.

"Don't get too worked up, I'm not here to start any trouble" Walker said.

"Then why are you here?" Sam asked him.

"Because, I know you both have heard about the possibility of a rebellion" Walker said. "It would be foolish for me to try and prosecute either of you, seeing as you're the only people who can maintain order in the Ghost Zone"

Walker continued "I'm here to inform you that if you need any assistance with dealing with the rebels, my men are at your disposal"

Before Danny could ask any more questions, the law enforcer left.

############################

Skulker was preparing for his final fight with the Ghost Boy. In the days following Vlad's visit, Skulker had been training vigorously. The Greatest Hunter of All History needed no other motivation than his pride. His pride would not allow him to accept the fact that a prey was stronger and smarter than him. Even when he was a human, he made up for his diminutive stature with his wits and intellect. Skulker had made a few adjustments to his armor to account for some of Danny's special abilities. Finally, Skulker felt he was ready for the final showdown with his old nemesis.

########################

Following the day they spent with Tucker, Danny and Sam rescheduled their date. Danny was on his way to meet Sam when he was blindsided and knocked out of the sky. Danny quickly picked himself up and turned to face the foe who had knocked him out of the sky.

"Get yourself up, Ghost Boy!" A voice commanded him. "We have a score to settle once and for all!"

"Skulker? Why did you have to choose today of all days to pick a fight with me?" Danny asked, irritated.

"Quit your whining and face me one last time," Skulker said. "If you win, I'll be out of your hair forever"

"You expect me to believe that?" Danny asked skeptically. "But if it's a fight you want,

Danny started the fight with a right hand. Skulker answered with a left jab. The two traded vicious blows and this was just the beginning. Danny but Skulker with a back kick to the gut that stunned the hunter. Danny followed up with a spinning back hand followed by a bionic elbow to the forehead. Skulker growled, grabbed Danny, and put him in a headlock. This allowed him to knee Danny in the stomach several times, knocking the air out of him. While Danny was doubled over, trying to catch his breath, Skulker head butted, creating a small cut on Danny's head.

Danny wiped away the blood and actually used his head as a battering ram to knock the air out of Skulker. Danny hit Skulker with a spinning roundhouse kick and then put Skulker in a headlock. Danny used this opportunity to knee Skulker in the spine several times, finishing with a dropkick to the back of the head. Skulker recoiled for a few moments but Danny stayed on the offensive, delivering a right hook. Skulker plummeted out of the sky but recovered rather quickly and went back for more. The two stopped fighting for a moment to catch their breath and recover from their injuries.

"So I take it you're part of Vlad's rebellion too?" Danny questioned the hunter, breathing heavily.

"I'd never go back to working for that slimy bastard, I'm doing this on my own and for me only" Skulker told him.

"Why?" Danny asked.

"I never did succeed in my goal of catching the rare prey that is a human-ghost hybrid," Skulker said "My reputation as the Greatest Hunter Dead or Alive hinges on this"

"Why don't you just hunt Vlad?" Danny replied. "He's also a human-ghost hybrid and you have reason to hunt him"

"I already told you, I don't ever want to have to deal with that bastard again" Skulker said.

"If you were smart, you'd try to avoid crossing paths with me as well" Danny said.

"Your arrogance will be your undoing, child!" Skulker threatened.

"I'm arrogant?" Danny replied. "You're the one who picked a fight with me for the sake of protecting your title and your pride"

Danny was unprepared when Skulker threw a handful of blades at him. Danny narrowly avoided being eviscerated and deflected the blades back at Skulker. One of them caught Skulker right in the arm. Skulker pulled the blade out of his arm and lunged at Danny with it. Danny skillfully avoided being sliced by the mad Hunter and kicked the knife out of his hands.

Skulker pulled out a dart gun and began firing at Danny. Danny tried dodging the darts, but one dart hit him in the arm. Suddenly it became harder for Danny to move. He became slow and sluggish and his limbs felt like they weighed a ton.

"What the?" Danny asked, also starting to become light headed and dizzy.

"Those weren't ordinary darts," Skulker revealed. "Those darts were dipped in a special toxin that makes it harder for the victim to move. It wears off after five minutes, but that's all the time I need"

Skulker took advantage of a disoriented Danny and punched him in the face. Skulker followed up with several more punches to the body and face. Danny tried throwing his hands up to block the blows but the toxin made him move too slow to mount any defense. Skulker grabbed Danny, wrapped his hands around his throat, and began throttling the life out of Amity Park's greatest hero. Danny threw punch after lunch at Skulker but his punches were either too slow or too weak to have any effect on him.

Suddenly, Skulker was knocked off of him. Danny looked up and saw Sam floating above him.

"Sam?" Danny asked. "What are you doing here and how did you know how to find me?"

"Well you were late for our date so I figured you were in a fight and I just followed the sound of you and Skulker fighting" Sam revealed.

"What?" Skulker exclaimed, not having accounted for the possibility of having to fight two halfas. "She's a half ghost now too?! How?"

"Not important right now" Sam said before kicking Skulker in the head.

Danny tried to jump in but Sam stopped him.

"You're still hurt, don't get yourself killed trying to play hero, I can handle this myself," she said.

"But," Danny tried to protest.

"No buts!" Sam said in a stern tone that a scolding mother would use.

"I was only planning on hunting down the Ghost Boy, but I'm pretty sure I can pencil you in" Skulker said.

"Yeah, good luck with that," Sam said.

Skulker fired the dart gun at Sammy, who merely deflected the darts with the flick of the wrist. Skulker tried using brute strength and force to take her down but Sam's speed made that all but impossible. Sam blasted Skulker in the face, nearly knocking off his helmet. Sam dodged a punch from Skulker, put his arm in a hammerlock and kneed him in the back. As Skulker tried fighting back, Sam punched through the chest of his armor, seemingly putting the Hunter down for the count.

"See, I told you I could handle it" Sam said.

"Hey, I weakened him up for you," Danny replied. "Besides I could've handled him myself, I just let him think he had the upper hand"

"Sure you did," Sam said.

While the two were talking, Skulker had one more trick up his sleeve. The left hand to his armor transformed into a huge cannon and charged up, prepared to fire a huge attack. Sam noticed this out of the corner of her eye and pushed Danny out of the way of the incoming blast, taking it herself. Sickly green electricity coursed through her body as she fell unconscious and fell out of the sky.

"Sam!" Danny cried out, rushing to her side.

Skulker was prepared to fire a second shot when he and DNny heard a familiar voice.

"Very good work, Skulker; I'll take over from here," Vlad said. "Thanks for weakening them up for me."

"I thought I told you to stay out of my business!" Skulker said, realizing Vlad had manipulated him and turning his attention to the fruit loop and prepared to fire on him.

"I'm here to help you finish off Danny Phantom once and for all, why are you so hostile?" Vlad asked.

"Because I'll never accept your help with anything again and two, because if I'm going to defeat the Ghost Boy, I'm going to do it by myself!" Skulker declared.

"Don't let your pride cloud your judgement" Vlad tried to advise him.

"I'm not letting my pride cloud my judgment," Skulker said. "I'm doing this under my terms."

"I see we're going to have to do this the hard way" Plasmius said before shoving Skulker and attempting to finish off the weakened halfa duo.

Plasmius was surprised when Skulker pulled him aside and slugged him.

"Why you…" Plasmius growled as he got ready to fight Skulker himself before Danny intervened and attacked him. Plasmius decided to call it a day and leave but not before saying "You're going to regret not accepting my help! And you, Daniel will see your whole world come crashing down"

Danny was prepared to finish his fight with Skulker but wasn't expecting the Hunter to say "It seems we both have a mutual hatred of Plasmius"

"Yeah, so?" Danny asked.

"What do you say we call a truce until Plasmius is dealt with and then have our final battle some other time?" Skulker proposed.

"Does this mean I can count on your help in fighting Vlad's rebellion?" Danny asked.

"Anything if it means dealing a blow to that egomaniac" Skulker confirmed. "But as soon as he's dealt with, I'm coming for you"

Skulker departed after that exchange as Danny scooped Sam in his arms and headed home.

"Wow, these past few days have been crazy," Danny thought "between dealing with Tucker's antics and having two former enemies ally with me, I don't know what to possibly expect next. I'm still trying to wrap my head around this whole thing. I think I'm going to head home and take a nap"

_**In the Next Chapter:**_

_**The scene was absolute carnage. On one side were ghosts donning ski masks that only seemed to be focused on as much mayhem as possible and on the other side were the royal army. The masked ghosts seemed to be carrying weapons of some sort. Danny was confused as to why ghosts would be using weapons until one of the weapons exploded. Any ghost caught in the explosion instantly disintegrated. **_

_**Green ectoplasm coated the area and both sides continued the bloody battle. The Rebellion had begun. Danny's face was frozen in shock at the destruction unfolded. Danny knew he had to act quick and sprung into action, looking to turn the tide in his side's favor.**_

**Hello, everybody! My birthday is today so I thought I'd put this up right now since I probably wouldn't have enough time throughout the rest of the day. I hope you enjoyed this chapter and as always, have a great day!**


	10. Take Me Once

GSTQ Chapter 9: Take Me Once, Take Me To The Revolution Part 1

To describe Vlad's mood as furious would be an understatement. The fruit loop was absolutely livid. He was so close to getting his revenge on Daniel and that idiotic hunter had to interfere. Since when were Skulker and Danny such close friends. The two had hated each other for years and now they decided to band together to stop his master plan. Vlad was convinced the universe was out to screw him over. No more being subtle and patient, no more Mister Nice Guy. It was time to start the revolt.

Vlad's most powerful ability was never duplication or his Ghost Stinger; Vlad considered his greatest power to be his ability to manipulate others into doing his bidding. He was a chess master, always thinking ten steps ahead of his enemies. His one fatal mistake this time was making an assumption. Fortunately for Vlad, that mistake wouldn't be too costly. He had already gathered enough followers to overthrow the young boy without much problem.

When Vlad returned to Earth, he brought a lot of Ectoranium back with him from the Disasteroid. The radioactive material was one of the few things that could kill a ghost, along with extreme brute force and Blood Blossoms. Even if the Ectoranium wouldn't kill Danny, it would still weaken him enough for Vlad to take advantage and kill him. Vlad was interrupted from his thoughts when he heard his cat meow. The former billionaire had almost forgotten about Maddie; the poor cat hadn't been fed in ages. Put his plans for revenge aside, Vlad rushed to the aid of his feline friend.

###################

"Do you think we should wake them?" Tucker asked.

"No way, they look so adorable" Dani replied.

"Maybe we should take their picture" Tucker suggested.

Following their fight with Skulker, Danny had taken Sam home. The two were so tired after the encounter that they fell asleep in each other's arms. Sam was lying with her head and arm on Danny's chest while Danny had his arm wrapped protectively around her.

Tucker pulled out his phone and took a picture, waking the lovebirds from their slumber. The two sat up quickly and immediately regretted it as soreness and pain over took them.

"Are you two alright?" Dani asked, sensing their discomfort.

"We're fine, just a little banged up from yesterday" Sam said.

"What happened yesterday?" Tucker asked.

Danny and Sam proceeded to explain the events from yesterday, recapping Skulker ambushing Danny, Vlad showing up and attempting to kill them after they were weakened, and Skulker having enough and attacking Vlad.

"So does that mean Skulker's a good guy now?" Asked a confused Tucker.

"Less a good guy and more anti-Vlad" Danny explained. "He made it clear that as soon as Vlad was out of the way, we'd be enemies again"

"So, in the past 72 hours, we've discovered Technus is working for Vlad and you've gained Walker and Skulker as allies" Dani recapped, just as confused as Danny was hours ago. "Have we entered Bizarro World?"

"We're still trying to make heads and tails of this situation too" Sam said.

"I can't help but wonder who Vlad has on his side" Dani pondered. "We already know he has Technus, but he could very well have allied with Desiree, or Johnny 13, or Ember, or who knows?"

"I can't see why anyone would ally with that fruit loop" Tucker said. "He's a manipulative nutcase who only looks out for himself"

"You said it yourself, he's a manipulative nutcase," Sam said. "Or at least he thinks he is. I doubt Vlad has recruited that many of Danny's enemies. Most of them have no motivation to work for him or like Skulker, still remember that Vlad was nearly responsible for killing all of us. The only reason he'd have any more allies would be because they disagree with having Danny and I as rulers rather than any allegiance with Vlad."

"But that's the only reason they need to work with Vlad," Danny argued.

"Ghosts like the ones mentioned aren't going to just forget history and put their trust in Vlad just to overthrow us. They'd be more likely to form their own resistance group than align with Vlad" Sam countered. "Heck, Vlad would be lucky if he could get Youngblood to join him

"I sure hope you're right," Danny said.

They had no idea just how right Sam was. Vlad's only relevant allies were Technus, Penelope Spectre and her assistant Bertrand. The rest of his army were nothing more than average mooks and as such, cannon fodder. Vlad had to face the harsh reality that as a result of his actions, half the Ghost Zone hated and wanted nothing to do with him; and contrary to Sam's statement, he wasn't even able to convince Youngblood to join him.

This was not a problem for Plasmius. Plasmius was meeting with Technus to discuss the development of something that would help his side take the advantage. Plasmius walked into Technus' laboratory and saw the technopath busy at work.

"How is development coming along?" Vlad asked.

"The first batch of weapons should be ready by tomorrow, however I still haven't tested them on anything," Technus answered. "I have no idea how effective they'll be"

"Well is it possible for you to conduct a quick test to determine their efficiency?" Plasmius asked.

"Find me a test subject and I'll see what I can do" Technus said.

"I'll be right back," Vlad grumbled before going out to find something to test their new weapon on.

He was back within thirty minutes, accompanied by a member of his rebellion. The moon he had chosen was one of the weakest fighters and thus wouldn't be too huge of a loss.

"You two said you needed me?" The mook asked.

"Yes, our combined genius has resulted in the creation of a new super powerful weapon!" Technus boasted. "And now we need you to help us test it!"

"Alright, cool" the clueless ghost agreed, letting Plasmius strap the weapon to his chest.

Technus and Plasmius made sure to get as far away from the poor mook as possible. Technus pulled out a remote control. Technus pressed the button and the weapon exploded with a huge flash. Following the blast, there was nothing but a puddle of ectoplasm left of the mook.

"It worked!" Technus exclaimed, almost surprised. "I really must thank you for the large quantity of Ectoranium you supplied me with; without it I wouldn't have been able to create this weapon without it,"

"I should be thanking you," Plasmius replied. "It is thanks to you that we're going to win this conflict,"

"Produce as many as these as you can, I'll supply you with as much Ectoranium as you need if you require more," said Plasmius.

"Don't worry about it," Technus replied. "I only require a minuscule amount of the material to make a single bomb"

"That's very good to hear" Plasmous said, smiling at the news. "At the same time, I'll be using the Ectoranium I have to work on a few different weapons of my own"

"How many bombs do you want me to produce?" Technus asked.

"At least 1,000 would be nice" Plasmius said. "But if that's not possible, I'll settle for 1/10 that amount"

"Do not doubt my abilities!" Technus yelled. "I can easily produce 2,000 of these in less than two hours"

"If that's the case, then we'll be able to launch our first attack tomorrow" Plasmius told him.

"I'll get straight to work" Technus told him.

Satisfied, Plasmius walked away. His only concern was revenge and right now he was so close to achieving his goal.

"I hope you two enjoyed your little fairy tale ending because pretty soon I'm going to bring your whole empire tumbling down" Vlad thought to himself.

The King and Queen weren't doing so well at the moment. Even after two days, the two were still feeling the effects of their fight with Skulker. The two were about to go on patrol when they were interrupted by Dani.

"Hey guys!" Dani greeted, throwing her arms around them, causing the two to wince in pain.

"Ow!" The two yelled before simultaneously saying "Not so hard, Danielle"

"Are you two okay?" Dani asked.

"We're fine," Danny lied, which didn't work as Dani immediately saw through.

"You two aren't going out on patrol, are you?" Dani asked.

"Why wouldn't we?" Sam countered.

"You two shouldn't be going out, looking for ghosts to fight," Dani scolded them. "Especially if you're still too hurt from your fight with Skulker"

"We're fine" Sam insisted.

"If you're alright then you wouldn't mind if I did this, right?" Dani asked before slapping the both of them on the back.

Both of them immediately dropped to their knees.

"Okay, okay; so we're still a little banged up," Danny confessed. "But if we don't protect Amity Park from ghosts, who will?"

"You two aren't the only ones with ghost powers, remember?" Dani reminded him. "You two just take the day off and relax, Amity Park will survive if you take one day off. Besides, I bet there won't even be any ghost attacks today"

"I don't know" Danny said, feeling hesitant.

"It's either I take your place for today or you ask your parents to take your place" Dani gave the ultimatum.

"On second thought, have fun" Danny said almost immediately.

"You two stay here, I'll take care of everything" Dani promised them before disappearing.

"Maybe she's right" Sam said. "Maybe we should relax, quit worrying to much, and forget about Plasmius right now. And since we're all by ourselves…"

"I'll get the checker board!" Danny yelled before running (actually more like limping) off to find the checker board.

Meanwhile

""Take a few days off," I said; "There probably won't be any ghost attacks" Dani muttered to herself as she fended off a large, tentacled ghost. Dani shot the ghost in the eye, causing it to reflexively hit her with one its tentacles, knocking Dani into some trash. "Why did you have to choose today of all days to attack?"

Dani quickly grabbed all of the ghost's tentacles and tied them together.

"I wonder what Danny and Sam are up to" Dani thought.

"Ha! King me!" Sam laughed.

Danny angrily knocked the checker board aside.

"Nobody likes a sore loser, Danny! I won, I won; that's right! It's my birthday!" Sam rubbed it in Danny's face, even doing a victory dance.

"I didn't wanna play that stupid game, anyway" Danny muttered angrily.

The two stopped when they saw Jonathan fly in. He looked like he had just been in a tornado and seemed panicked.

"Jonathan, what are you doing here?" Danny asked.

"Your majesties, you must come quickly!" Jonathan told them, speaking quickly. "A large group of hooligans started attacking the castle. The guards tried holding them back but they have some type of advanced weapons!"

"Whoa, whoa! Slow down" Sam told him. "Tell us exactly what's happening"

"I'll explain on our way there, there's really no time to waste" Jonathan said, grabbing the two by the wrists and pulling them aside.

The three of them made their way to the castle. Jonathan explained how everything was peaceful until roughly noon when a random ghost approached with a device strapped to his chest. The guards accidentally ended up detonating the device, killing a few. A few moments later, dozens more followed, each one win bombs strapped to their chest.

When Danny and Sam reached the castle, they found the battle was still ongoing. The scene was absolute carnage. On one side were ghosts donning ski masks that only seemed to be focused on causing as much mayhem as possible and on the other side were the royal army. The masked ghosts seemed to be carrying weapons of some sort. Danny was confused as to why ghosts would be using weapons until one of the weapons exploded. Any ghost caught in the explosion instantly disintegrated.

Green ectoplasm coated the area and both sides continued the bloody battle. The Rebellion had begun. Danny's face was frozen in shock at the destruction unfolded. Danny knew he had to act quick and sprung into action, looking to turn the tide in his side's favor.

"Hey, it's the king and queen!" One rebel yelled. "Why don't we give them a little present!"

"You stay here! I'll take care of this" Danny tried to tell Sam, but when he turned to look, Sam had already joined the battle. "Damn it! Why does she do this? And she says I try to play hero too much"

Sam was helping as many guards as she could. She took care of the rebels by detonating their bombs from as afar as possible. This still didn't stop more and more rebels from trying to bum rush them. Sam took care of the problem by restraining them with her vines allowing her to easily detonate them bombs without having to worry about getting caught in the blast. This killed multiple rebels at once and started turning the tide.

"What do you think you're doing? You could've gotten yourself killed" Danny scolded Sam.

"The same could be said of you," Sam pointed out. "I was not about to sit back and watch you possibly die!"

"You can be so stubborn" Danny said.

Despite being killed off by the scores, this did not deter any of the rebels.

"Tick tock, what's up my-" One bomber shouted before being blown up by Sam.

Pretty soon, very few rebels were left. Those few rebels realized how futile and idiotic it would be to continue fighting and killing themselves and decided to retreat. One rebel however decided to try for one last kill, but was stopped when Sam removed the bomb from his chest with her vines and then tied him up.

"After them!" One of the soldiers yelled, but Danny stopped them.

"Let them go, there's no need to sacrifice any more lives than necessary" Danny told him.

"Yes, your majesty" The soldier said before turning to his platoon. "Stand down!"

"Your majesties, what do you want us to do with this scum?" Asked one guard, holding up the captured rebel.

"Carry him away for interrogation" Danny instructed.

"Yes, your majesty" The guard said before leading the prisoner.

"What do you think we should do with this?" Sam asked, holding the discarded bomb in her hands.

"I think we should take this to my parents so they can see what it's made of" Danny said before turning to Jonathan. "We'll be back tomorrow, hopefully with more information. Until then, I want you to take charge,"

Jonathan bowed and nodded his head as Danny and Sam departed. It was clear to both of them that this was just the start of what could escalate into a full blown war. As such, they needed to be in the Ghost Zone more frequently to keep an eye on things.

**In the next chapter:**

_**Danny had just finished dealing with the last of the ghosts when he heard a voice behind him.**_

_**"Excuse me, Mr. Phantom" the voice said.**_

_**Danny turned around and instinctively raised his fist to punch the source of the voice.**_

_**"Whoa, calm down; it's just me!" The voice said as Danny turned around and realized it was Thaddeus.**_

_**"Oh, it's you" Danny said. "You really shouldn't be here in the middle of a fight just to get a story, it's too dangerous"**_

_**"Oh please, I've been deployed to Afghanistan twice to get a story and was once caught in the crossfire between a battle between US troops and terrorists, there is nothing I can't handle" Thaddeus assured him. **_

_**"So I'm guessing you're here to get he scoop on this ghost attack, am I right?" Danny asked.**_

_**"Close," Thaddeus stated. "I'm here to find out how you're dealing with being King of the Ghost Zone and all"**_

_**Well let me tell you, it's far from easy-" Danny stated to say before realizing he hadn't told anyone that he'd been crowned King of the Ghost Zone. "Wait, how did you find out I was the Ghost King?"**_

_**The next thing Danny knew, he was being electrocuted and then found himself powerless. Thaddeus had a wicked grin on his face and revealed his true identity.**_

_**"Tsk, tsk, Daniel; keeping your guard down for even the briefest moment" Vlad scolded him before grabbing him by his shirt collar. "Let's go talk someplace more private"**_

**Ever had one of those nights where you just wake up at 2 am in the morning with sudden inspiration. So you spend the next hour or two writing a chapter while playing video games and listening to music. Really? I'm the only one? Yeah, so I was in the middle of sleeping when all of a sudden I woke up with a ton of ideas. So I grabbed my phone, listened to some music, fired up my game, and started typing. Funny how much you can get done while playing **_**007 Everything or Nothing.**_** Anyway, I've already started working on the next chapter so don't be surprised if the story is updated soon. As always, I've been Timothy D and have a nice day.**


	11. Take Me To The Revolution

GSTQ, Chapter 10: Take Me Once, Take Me to the Revolution part 2

Danny and Sam took the bomb they had retrieved to Jack and Maddie. Dani was alongside them, in case anything bad happened. The two ghost hunters slowly dismantled the bomb, being extremely careful not to set it off.

"This quite a complex bomb," Maddie observed, removing a set of wires. "Whoever built this knew exactly what they were doing"

"I wonder what this bomb was made of that allowed it to be able to kill ghosts" Jack said as he removed the bomb's detonator.

He was about to get his answer as he took out a crucial portion of the bomb, about a gram of Ectoranium. The three halfas immediately started feeling the effects of the radioactive material and morphed back into their human forms.

"Well that answers that question, but only raises another: how did the bomb maker get their hands on Ectoranium?" Maddie asked. "You don't think-"

"No, Vlad can't be back" Jack said. "That fruit loop is should still be stranded in outer space"

Jack turned to the three halfas to ask them if Vlad was back but turned around to find that they were all gone.

"Okay, so why didn't we tell your parents about Vlad's return?" Sam asked as soon as they were out of Jack and Maddie's earshot.

"Because the last thing I want my parents to do is try and capture and/ or kill Vlad and end up getting themselves killed" Danny whispered back.

"Oh come on, they wouldn't do that" Dani tried to convince him.

"Well we still don't need to be dragging my parents into an even bigger conflict that doesn't involve them" Danny said.

"But we still might need their help later," Sam pointed out.

"If we need their help later, we'll go to them," Danny said. "For right now, I don't want to drag them into this conflict, right now let's get back for the Ghost Zone"

Danny needed some answers. Following the attack, 24 of his soldiers were left dead (again), with 11 more wounded. Jonathan was there to welcome the three of them when they arrived at the castle.

"Greetings, your majesties and young princess" Jonathan said, bowing respectfully. "I take it everything is was in order in the human realm?"

"Everything is fine, how's it progressing with the prisoner?" Danny asked.

"We've tried everything and we're still interrogating him but he refuses to cooperate" Jonathan informed him.

"Take us to the prisoner right now" Sam ordered.

"Sure thing, your majesty" Jonathan said before leading Danny, Sam, and Danielle to the dungeon.

The captured ghost from the attack was tied down to a table and being beaten with clubs by two burly guards. The prisoner started trolling as soon as he saw the royal trio approaching.

"Oh, please; please stop" The prisoner said mockingly. "I'll do anything!"

"Quit fooling around!" The first guard shouted before clubbing the prisoner across the chest.

"Well that's no way to get me to talk" The prisoner said.

"We apologize for the inconvenience, the prisoner is being quite the stubborn jackass" The guard apologized.

"It's not your fault, if you don't mind, we'll take it from here" Sam told the guard.

"Oh, please; if your little lapdogs couldn't get me to talk, what makes you think you can?" The prisoner asked.

"We're not in the mood for any games, just tell us what you know" Danny ordered.

"You won't get shit from me, old man!" The prisoner barked.

"Dude, I'm probably younger than you" Danny pointed out.

"Hey, I don't know anything; we were just a bunch of tourists passing by, totally minding our own business" The prisoner said, a silly grin on his face. "So we cool, dude?"

Dani then stomped on the prisoner's hand causing the prisoner to scream. Sam then used her vines to tied the prisoner's hands behind his back and slowly raised his arms.

"Okay, okay; we were following orders" The prisoner finally cooperated. "We were just told to cause as much mayhem and disorder as possible. And if the royal couple were to intervene, kill them"

"Who gave you your orders?" Danny asked, even though he already knew the answer.

"I don't know, some old stick in the mud fuck and a crazy mad scientist motherfucker!" The prisoner said.

"Anyone else?" Dani ask.

"Why should I tell you?" The prisoner asked before Sam raised his hands even higher.

"Okay, okay, Queen Bitch-" the prisoner said before Danny punched him in the face.

"Watch your fucking mouth," Danny snapped at the prisoner.

"Alright jeez" The prisoner sighed. "So they've got this weird shadowy bitch and her little lapdog thing or whatever helping them out. As for her role, your guess is as good as mine"

"That must be Penelope Spectra" Dani concluded.

The prisoner continued "The three of them plotted several attacks on your empire! Our attack was only supposed to make you scared and kill off your guards so you'd be more vulnerable."

"What do you mean they plotted several other attacks?" Danny asked.

"Originally there were supposed to be more attacks yesterday to take out any potential allies since you'd be too busy dealing with our attack to deal with the others" The prisoner confessed. "After wiping out your allies, we'd come back with a larger army and try overthrowing you"

Danny's cell phone rang at that moment. A quick check of the caller ID showed it was Tucker. Knowing how busy his friend was as mayor, Danny could tell the news was urgent.

"Hello?"

"Danny, we've got a bit of a situation" Tucker said.

"What kind of situation?" Danny asked.

"Try at least a hundred ghosts all attacking Amity Park at the same time!" Tucker shouted. "We need you, Sam, and Dani to get over here quickly before anyone gets hurt"

"I'll be there as quickly as possible" Danny assured his friend before hanging up. He turned to Dani and Sam and said "We need to go and quickly"

"What's wrong?" Sam asked.

"Another attack, this time on Amity Park" Danny explained before giving the guard his orders. "Keep a close eye on the prisoner, let me know if he tells anything else. Also be alert in case there's another attack"

"Sure thing, your majesty" The guard said as the three halfas hurried to get back to Amity Park.

The scene was chaotic to say the least. Tucker wasn't lying when he said there was at least 100 ghosts. The ghosts were wearing the same thing as the suicide bombers from yesterday. These ghosts didn't seem as focused on causing destruction as their suicidal counterparts and were more methodical. Danny pulled out two extra thermos and handed them to Dani and Sam.

"Try to capture as many ghosts as you can" Danny told them. "Let's split up so we can cover more ground."

After splitting up, Danny confronted some of the rebels. The rebels immediately stopped what they were doing and turned their attention to the Ghost King.

"Well, didn't take long to catch your attention, did it?" One rebel asked. He had a distinct Australian accent and was sporting a smirk.

"You are attacking my home city, what did you expect?" Danny asked. "Now why don't you quit attacking innocent civilians and got back to the Ghost Zone?"

"You're not the boss of us" the rebel replied.

"Actually, I kinda am" Danny said with a smirk before going after the invaders.

"I'm going to enjoy this," the Australian accented ghost said. "It's not everyday that you get to kill a king"

The rebels charged Danny, who evaded their attacks. Danny used the thermos to capture a few of the rebels before it was knocked out of his hands, forcing Danny to fight without it. He'd have to retrieve the thermos later The sheer numbers of the rebels made dealing with the group difficult, but Danny managed to survive by sticking and moving. Right now Danny had to focus on staying on the defensive. The rebels shot a series of blasts at the hero, but Danny was quick enough to avoid each shot. Danny used his speed to fly above two rebels and knock them out with a blow to the head.

Four ghosts surrounded Danny, intending to use their numbers to their advantage. The four lunged at Danny. Danny sidestepped one ghost, grabbed him by his arm and flung him into another ghost. Danny threw up his arm to block the punch of another ghost and elbowed another in the face. The Ghost King blasted the remaining ghost in the face before roundhouse kicking another ghost that had come back for more. With 6 down, there were only 29 more to go. Danny made a beckoning gesture with his hand and watched as one by one, the ghosts charged him. Danny had a hard time dealing with them all at once but kept ducking and dodging then striking when the opportunity arose. Danny was taken off guard when a large, rather bulky ghost shoulder blocked him, knocking him into a hot dog cart.

"Oh man, this is going to be hard getting out" Danny muttered, covered in condiments.

"That a boy, Bones; take him out" The Australian Ghost said, sitting back and watching.

Bones cracked his knuckles and prepared to inflict some serious pain on Danny. Danny however was prepared and squirt ketchup and mustard into Bones' eyes. Danny began punching away at the temporarily blinding goliath. Bones quickly wiped the condiments from his eyes and punched Danny in the gut. Danny immediately doubled over, the air being driven out of him. Bones followed up by elbowing Danny in the back, sending Danny crashing into the ground.

While Danny was lying on the ground, trying to recuperate, Bones jumped on his spine. Bones got off of Danny and kicked him in the stomach, propelling him into a street post. Bones picked Danny up by his hair and punched him in the face.

"Wow, this guy's strong; I've got to do something soon or I might end up full ghost" Danny observed

When Bones came continue attacking Danny, Danny kicked Bones in the chin. Bones staggered back allowing Danny to blast him in the chest. Danny stayed on the attack, attacking Bones with lightning fast kicks and punches. His offensive flurry was cut short when Bones caught his fist and head butted him. Bones started charging up a huge ball of energy, prepared to annihilate Danny.

"That's it! Finish him!" The Australian Ghost barked.

Both Bones and the Australian Ghost were surprised when Danny not only caught the ball of energy and threw it back at Bones. The large ghost staggered back and soon found himself on the receiving end of a beat down. Danny finished off the behemoth with a chop to the neck, knocking Bones out for the count.

"Well don't just stand there you idiots!" The Australian Ghost commanded. "Get him!"

The remaining ghosts all fell one by one to Danny until only the Australian was left. The Australian gritted his teeth and simply fired a barrage of blasts at Danny. Afterwards, he smirked, sure that he had killed the Ghost King. When the smoke cleared however, Danny was floating completely unscathed.

"Too bad, you missed; but good try" Danny taunted before knocking out the Australian with a single punch.

With that, Danny picked up his thermos and sucked up the unconscious ghosts. Danny had just finished dealing with the last of the ghosts when he heard a voice behind him.

"Excuse me, Mr. Phantom" the voice said.

Danny turned around and instinctively raised his fist to punch the source of the voice.

"Whoa, calm down; it's just me!" The voice said as Danny turned around and realized it was Thaddeus.

"Oh, it's you" Danny said. "You really shouldn't be here in the middle of a fight just to get a story, it's too dangerous"

"Oh please, I've been deployed to Afghanistan twice to get a story and was once caught in the crossfire between a battle between US troops and terrorists, there is nothing I can't handle" Thaddeus assured him.

"So I'm guessing you're here to get he scoop on this ghost attack, am I right?" Danny asked.

"Close," Thaddeus stated. "I'm here to find out how you're dealing with being King of the Ghost Zone and all"

"Well let me tell you, it's far from easy-" Danny stated to say before realizing he hadn't told anyone that he'd been crowned King of the Ghost Zone. "Wait, how did you find out I was the Ghost King?"

The next thing Danny knew, he was being electrocuted and then found himself powerless. Thaddeus had a wicked grin on his face and revealed his true identity.

"Tsk, tsk, Daniel; keeping your guard down for even the briefest moment" Vlad scolded him before grabbing him by his shirt collar. "Let's go talk someplace more private"

**In The Next Chapter:**

_**Danny struggled, trying to break his shackles. Even if he had his ghost powers, they wouldn't be of any use since the chains were ghost proof. That didn't stop Danny from trying however. The halfa continued struggling, trying to break the chains. Finally he heard a cracking sound followed by several more. Danny kept pulling at his restrains until he pulled chains from the wall. Once he was free, Danny ran over to the door of his cell. There was no way he could break the bars, but fortunately Vlad had left his cell phone lying close to the door. Danny reached through the bars, trying to grab his phone, but it seemed to be just out of his reach. Danny stretched his arms, making a grab at his phone. His fingers were only a few inches away. Danny made one last desperate grasp and finally managed to grab his phone. Danny quickly went to Messages and saw the text Vlad had sent Sam. Acting quickly, Danny typed a warning and sent it to Sam.**_

**Let's take a moment to pray. Oh dear Lord, other than my friends and family (and alter egos), I must thank you for five things: chocolate, my ability to function just fine with only 2 hours of sleep, LittleKuriboh, TeamFourStar, and Phil Collins. Thank you lord for all of those things, especially Phil Collins. Please continue to bless me with inspiration and allow me to enjoy the work of Phil effing Collins. Amen.**

**In all seriousness, I finished this chapter not too long after chapter 9 went up. More good news: be on the lookout for chapter 11 in the near future. I guess I'm compensating for when school starts later this month, leaving me with less time to write chapters. Now I'm just rambling. Anyways, be sure to be here next week for another exciting chapter of God Save The Queen. Same Ghost Time, Same Ghost Channel. As always, I've been Timothy D and have a great day! Peace!**


	12. It's A Trap

God Save The Queen Chapter 11: It's A Trap

Sam and Dani had finished capturing their share of rebels and we're waiting to hear back from Danny. The two were sure he'd have taken care of the rebels by now. Sam was starting to get worried.

"Where is he? He should be back by now" Sam said, pacing the floor nervously.

"I'm sure he's fine," Dani tried to calm her down. "He probably just ran into some more ghosts"

"But this isn't like him, he would've called or done something to let me know if he ran into anymore trouble" Sam said before she tried calling Danny on his cell phone.

Danny's phone rang continuously before going straight to voice mail.

"He's not picking up," Sam said as she flew off.

"Where are you going?" Dani asked.

"Something's wrong, I just know it," Sam said. "I'm going to go find Danny"

#########################

"So care to explain exactly what your master plan is?" Danny asked as he struggled in his chains.

After using the Plasmius Maximus to short out his powers, Plasmus kidnapped and brought him… somewhere. His current cell had no windows so Danny had no landmarks that could help him identify the area. Even if he could see outside, Danny doubted he'd be able to determine his location.

"Is it really that hard to figure?" Vlad asked rhetorically. "My master plan is to usurp the throne. Once I've taken control over the Ghost Zone and have the Crown and the Ring in my possession, I'll be able to take over Earth as well. By capturing you and taking the Crown, I'm one step closer to succeeding"

"Sure you are" Danny said sarcastically. "You know, they say insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results"

"I'm far from insane" Vlad retorted. "A madman wouldn't have been able to come up with such an ingenious plan"

"Yeah, returning to the planet while you're the most hated and most wanted man on the planet, recruiting a bunch of ghosts who only joined you because they were uncomfortable with the idea of a human queen, and orchestrating suicide bomb attacks is so clever" Danny quipped.

"Mock me all you want," Vlad replied, rolling his eyes. "When this is all over, the whole world will be bowing before me, just as they should have 10 months ago"

"I see the little insanity thing went straight over your head" Danny mused. "You don't know when to call it quits, do you? Although then again, you don't really have anything to lose"

"Precisely, and it's all because of you!" Vlad hissed.

"All because of me? How is it my fault?" Danny replied. "I wasn't the one who sent the Disasteroid on a collision course for Earth. I'm not the one who attempted to exploit the situation, held the world hostage and tried to force the world to declare me their new ruler. I'm not the one who forgot to make sure my plan to save the world would actually work, then fled and left everyone for dead when said plan failed spectacularly. So please explain to me how your situation is my fault"

"You just had to make me out to be the villain by coming up with such a simple plan that only by sheer luck managed to succeed" Vlad snarled.

"Oh, so I guess I was just supposed to sit back, do nothing, and let the Earth and Ghost Zone be destroyed along with all forms of life and unlife?" Danny retorted. "And I didn't make you look like a villain, you did a good job of doing that yourself"

"I was going to save the world!" Vlad yelled.

"Yeah, only to rule over it yourself with an iron fist" Danny pointed out.

"A small price to pay for the safety of Earth!" Vlad snapped.

"And you say you're not a villain" Danny said, rolling his eyes.

Vlad ignored Danny's last statement and said "It is my destiny to be a ruler, a leader, a king."

"Yeah, just like it was your destiny to kill my dad and marry my mom" Danny remarked, causing Vlad to turn and fire an ecto blast at his head. Danny barely managed to move his head in time.

"I'm warning you, don't tempt me" Vlad said through grit teeth.

"So if your plan succeeds and you do manage to take over both realms, what'll you do next?" Danny asked.

"That's an idiotic question," Vlad replied. "Obviously I'm going to rule over the world!"

"And what makes you think that nobody will rebel against you?" Danny asked.

"Simple, if anyone rebels, I'll incinerate them" Vlad explained. "Once enough people have been killed, no one will dare rebel against me for fear of being executed."

"As long as you know you becoming king will never happen" Danny said.

"All I have to do is capture Samantha and take the Ring of Rage from her, then I'll be unstoppable" Vlad gloated.

"Good luck" Danny said. "Are you going to just ambush her out of nowhere with your Plasmius Maximus, and kidnap her too? She could easily keep you away using her vines"

"Samantha won't see me coming until it's too late" Vlad said before pulling out Danny's smart phone. "Of course, we both know she's do anything to save her beloved,"

"What are you doing?" Danny asked.

"Just sending a little text message to Samantha, inviting her to our little party" Vlad explained. Vlad typed "Sam, things are a lot crazier than we think, meet me on top of the hill overlooking Amity Park. I'll explain everything"

Danny's phone got a reply about two minutes later. Sam's response read "I'm on my way". Seeing the response, Vlad smirked.

"Well I hate to leave you all alone, but don't worry; you'll have some company real soon" Vlad said before flying off, leaving Danny chained to the wall.

"Crap!" Danny thought. "I've got to warn Sam that she's running into a trap somehow"

Danny struggled, trying to break his shackles. Even if he had his ghost powers, they wouldn't be of any use since the chains were ghost proof. That didn't stop Danny from trying however. The half a continued struggling, trying to break the chains. Finally he heard a cracking sound followed by several more. Danny kept pulling at his restrains until he pulled chains from the wall. Once he was free, Danny ran over to the door of his cell. There was no way he could break the bars, but fortunately Vlad had left his cell phone lying close to the door. Danny reached through the bars, trying to grab his phone, but it seemed to be just out of his reach. Danny stretched his arms, making a grab at his phone. His fingers were only a few inches away. Danny made one last desperate grasp and finally managed to grab his phone. Danny quickly went to Messages and saw the text Vlad had sent Sam. Acting quickly, Danny typed a warning and sent it to Sam.

#################################

Sam was flying to meet Danny at the rendezvous. Sam had a strange feeling about the whole thing and had brought Dani with her in case things went south. The two were almost at the hill when Sam received the text.

"Sam! Whatever you do, don't go to Lookout Hill! It's a trap! I didn't send that text,Vlad did and he's waiting for you to show up so he can capture you and steal the Ring of Rage! Don't Go!"

Sam immediately stopped dead in her tracks just as she and Danielle were coming upon Lookout Hill, catching Dani off guard.

"Why'd you stop?" Dani asked, turning around.

"It's a trap" Sam explained as she showed Dani the text Danny had sent her. "Vlad's waiting for us and he's probably captured Danny, we've got to go!"

The girls heard a familiar voice behind them say "Leaving so soon"

The girls turned and saw the billionaire fruit loop floating before them. He was wearing the Crown of Fire on his head. Upon seeing him, Sam instinctively reached back to move Dani behind her, shielding her from Vlad.

"I take it Daniel somehow managed to warn you of my intentions," Plasmius said. "So are you going to hand over the Ring willingly or am I going to have to take it from you?"

"Like hell I'll hand it over to you!" Sam yelled, prepared to do battle with the fruit loop.

"I knew it wouldn't be that easy," Vlad said.

"Where's Danny?! Tell me!" Sam demanded, a deadly look in her eye.

"I wouldn't be so concerned with him at the moment if I were you considering you'll be joining him soon," Vlad replied. "Right now, you need to focus on me"

Vlad made the first move, launching a surprise attack at the Ghost Queen. Sam dodged and tried hitting Vlad with a back elbow. Vlad evaded the attack attempt by grabbing Sam's arm. Plasmius planned on using the opportunity to neutralize Sam's powers with Plasmius Maximus but Sam countered by executing the ippon seoi nage judo throw. Plasmius quickly recovered and fired an eye beam at Sam. Sam managed to dodge one blast but was hit in the chest by another, nearly knocking her out of the sky. Sam shook her head and fought back, firing two ecto blasts. Plasmius merely threw up a shield and kicked Sam in the face. He grabbed Sam by her neck and tossed her into a tree.

"I find it amusing that a girl who has only had her abilities for a few weeks would dare go up against someone far more experienced and powerful" Plasmius said as he flew over to a fallen Sam and kicked her in the face again.

Sam continued fighting back, landing a punch to Vlad's face that seemingly broke the latter's nose. Thanks to his healing abilities, Vlad's nose quickly healed, but Vlad was infuriated. Plasmius, with his super speed, appeared behind Sam in the blink of an eye and kicked her in the back. He then appeared in front of her and elbowed her in the stomach as hard as he could. Sam dropped to her knees and coughed up a little bit of blood.

Sam couldn't be deterred however and drop kicked Plasmius in the face. She followed up her offense with kick to the back of the neck. Sam used her vine ability to grab Plasmius by his leg and smash him into the ground.

"I must admit, that's quite an impressive ability" Plasmius said as he picked himself off the ground. "Shame it went to someone as weak and pathetic as yourself"

Vlad used duplication and created two clones and attacked Sam. Sam tried fighting all three of them but couldn't keep up. Every time she dealt with one Vlad, another would land a sneak attack.

"It doesn't matter how much training you've done, without the years of experience Daniel, myself, and even his useless clone have, your powers are meaningless" Vlad said to Sam, who was kneeling on the ground in pain. Sam defiantly spit some blood in his face. Vlad responded by violently slapping Sam across the face, nearly giving the girl a concussion. "I think I'll just finish you off now!"

Before Vlad could deliver another attack, he was kicked in the face by Dani.

"Forget about me?" Dani taunted, attempting to catch Vlad by surprise with an ice attack. Unfortunately Vlad saw it coming and deflected the attack.

"How could I forget about a worthless clone such as yourself?" Vlad replied, firing at Dani.

Dani and Vlad did battle briefly but Plasmius managed to take advantage and grabbed Dani by her throat.

"I've been waiting to kill you for a long time" Vlad said with a smirk, about to kill Dani before he was shot in the eye by an ecto blast.

"Get your hands off her!" Sam growled, punching Vlad in the face as hard as she could; hard enough to actually create shockwaves. This time it was Vlad who nearly had a concussion.

Sam quickly grabbed Dani and flew off while Plasmius was still dazed and confused. She couldn't allow Plasmius to possibly get his hands on the Ring of Rage and become the most powerful halfa.

"Where are we going?" Dani asked.

"Anywhere but here" Sam said. "Vlad already has the Crown of Fire, we can't allow him to get his hands on the Ring of Rage as well"

"What about Danny?" Dani asked. "Where's Vlad holding him?"

"I don't know, but we know someone who can help us find him" Sam said.

**In The Next Chapter:**

_**Plasmius awoke a few minutes after the girls had left. Once again, a spanner had been thrown in the works. Why did these type of things happen to him? He was so close to kingship only for it to slip through his fingers. Vlad decided that it was time to implement Plan B and flew back to his hideout.**_

_**Danny was sitting in his cell, praying that Sam got his text in time. Danny was interrupted from his thoughts when he heard Vlad enter. Vlad opened the door to Danny's cell and the next thing Danny knew, he was sprawled out on the floor. Danny felt blood trickle out of the side of his mouth as Vlad picked him up by the collar and slammed him into the wall.**_

**What's up everybody! This is the last chapter that will go up before my classes start next week. So in between exams, essays, and studying, I don't know how often I'll be able to update this story. However, I do promise that I will update it on a monthly basis. If I fail to live up to my promise then… I'll let you decide the punishment. Anyway, I hoped you enjoyed the story, I appreciate you for reading/ favoriting/ following/ reviewing. Have a great day, peace!**


	13. Where's Danny

**God Save The Queen Chapter 12: Where's Danny**

Plasmius awoke a few minutes after the girls had left. Once again, a spanner had been thrown in the works. Why did these type of things happen to him? He was so close to kingship only for it to slip through his fingers. Vlad decided that it was time to implement Plan B and flew back to his hideout.

Danny was sitting in his cell, praying that Sam got his text in time. Danny was interrupted from his thoughts when he heard Vlad enter. Vlad opened the door to Danny's cell and the next thing Danny knew, he was sprawled out on the floor. Danny felt blood trickle out of the side of his mouth as Vlad picked him up by the collar and slammed him into the wall.

"You sneaky little bastard!" Vlad yelled.

"So I take it your plan failed… again?" Danny taunted Vlad as bits of plaster fell into his hair.

Vlad responded by slamming Danny into the wall once again. There was a crack and Danny thought one of his ribs might be broken.

"I've had just about enough of your shenanigans! Because of you, Samantha managed to escape with the Ring!" Vlad yelled.

"Well that's what happens when you leave a cell phone in arm's reach of your prisoner" Danny continued antagonizing Vlad. Vlad once again slammed Danny as hard as he could into the wall. Danny didn't care what happened to him at this point as long as Sam was safe for the time being.

"You think you've stopped my plan? That you've saved the day once again? Not even close" Vlad told Danny. "While you may have kept the ring out of my hands temporarily, I will eventually take and I'll be unstoppable. There is always a Plan B"

"And that Plan B is?" Danny asked.

"Well since I have you in my possession, I can simply use you as a hostage to take over your castle," Vlad explained. "My forces can prevent any interference, and afterwards I can use you as ransom to force Samantha to hand over the ring"

"Why? Why?" Danny asked.

"Because I'm trying to take over the world!" Vlad replied, quite annoyed.

"No, I mean why didn't you just go with that plan in the first place?" Danny asked, equally annoyed with his nemesis. "It seems far less risky and you don't have to try and take the ring by force."

"Because I wanted to get Samantha out of the picture," Vlad continued explaining. "By leaving her alive and allowing her to get even within 50 meters of you, I risk her somehow freeing you, you two somehow teaming up and then defeating me once again"

"You have a point," Danny said.

"In addition to that, Samantha and your worthless daughter, err, I mean clone are tracking me down right now" Vlad said.

"Uh, what do you mean daughter?" Danny asked, instantly picking up on Vlad misspeaking.

"If you paid any attention in biology, you'd know that DNA from two opposite sexes is required to create a clone" Vlad belittled his captive.

"Yeah and…" Danny asked, not liking where Plasmius was going with this.

"Do I have to spell it out for you? I created Danielle using cells from both you and Samantha so technically she is your daughter" Vlad admitted.

"You're a creep!" Danny said, disgusted at the thought of Vlad using Sam's cells. "How did even get cells from her in the first place?"

"Is that really important?" Vlad asked.

"YES!" Danny stated emphatically.

"Your questions can wait until later we need to get moving and quickly" Vlad said before giving Danny another shock with the Plasmius Maximus to keep his powers neutralized. Vlad then cuffed Danny's arms and legs before grabbing his and leaving.

"Idiot," Danny thought to himself. "He forgot to take my cell phone… again"

Little did Danny know that Vlad purposely allowed Danny to keep his phone so he could use it later. Vlad wasn't wrong when he guessed that Dani and Sam were tracking him down. The two went straight to Tucker to get his help in locating Danny. Tucker was currently using the texts sent from Danny's phone to try and pinpoint his location.

"How's it coming along?" Dani asked.

"I've managed to find his cell phone," Tucker reported. "Unfortunately, it seems as if it's on the move"

"Where are they headed?" Sam asked.

"I don't know," Tucker said. "I'm still trying to figure out their original location. Then I can work from there." Tucker typed the coordinates of the original location into Google Maps. The coordinates lead to a small abandoned packaging facility in Wisconsin. However, Vlad and Danny were moving fast and seemingly doing so randomly, almost as if Vlad was trying to figure out the next step in his plan.

"It doesn't seem as if they're headed to any particular location," Tucker told the girls. "Most likely, Vlad's just trying to stay under the radar."

Vlad had a bit of a problem. He had no way of accessing the Ghost Zone. The only reason he was able to access the Ghost Zone previously was because he had rebuilt his castle and Ghost Portal without anyone knowing. Right now he couldn't just head to his abandoned castle, that would make it much easier for Daniel's friends to find him. He needed to stay out of sight if he wished for the plan to succeed. If only there was some way he could create his own portal to the Ghost Zone without using his ghost portal. Vlad was thinking as hard as he could for some other solution. Should he just take the chance and risk being caught, hoping that maybe the kids weren't able to track him down? Or should he head to another abandoned building and hide out their until it was safe to move once again. Danny could easily tell Vlad was distressed and had no idea what he was doing.

"So do you mind telling me exactly where we're going?" Danny asked. "Or are we just going to fly in circles all day?"

"Would you just shut up for one minute and let me think?" Vlad replied, still trying to come up with a solution.

"Alright, I found them" Tucker reported back to his friends.

"Where are they?"

"Somewhere in some wooded area about twenty miles from Vlad's old mansion" Tucker said. "If you hurry, you might just be able to catch them"

"Thanks, Tuck; you're the best" Sam thanked him before hurrying off.

"I know," Tucked replied but no one heard him.

Vlad had decided to just chance it and go for his mansion. Even if Dani and Sam did manage to pinpoint their location, by the time they arrived, he and Danny would be long gone. Vlad made sure to blindfold Danny so he wouldn't be able to see where they were going. Within ten minutes, Vlad was back at his old home. Walking through the walls, he lead Danny to the basement.

"Move it, boy!" Vlad barked, aggressively shoving Danny forward. Danny heard he doors opening to the Ghost Portal before being shoved inside.

Dani and Sam were hot on Vlad's tail and were investigating the surrounding area. So far, they could find no trace of the fruit loop. Then they received another phone call from Tucker.

"Have you guys found him yet?" Tucker asked.

"No, we haven't been able to find a single trace of either of them" Sam told him.

"Well neither can I," said Tucker said. "Danny's cell phone disappeared off the radar almost as if they vanished into thin air"

Sam quickly figured out what happened and concluded "Then Vlad must've taken both of them into the Ghost Zone"

"Why would Vlad take Danny there?" Tucker asked.

"Because, The Ghost Zone is so vast and large that there are plenty of places to hide," Dani explained.

"Then how could you possibly expect to find Danny?" Tucker asked in response.

"I don't know, but we've got to try something," Sam stated as she and Dani sped back to Amity Park to use the Fenton Portal to get to the Ghost Zone.

"Hey, remember when Walker offered his services to you and Danny?" Dani asked Sam.

"Yeah," Sam said.

"Why don't we get him to help us in our search for Danny" Dani suggested.

"That's a great idea," Sam said. "With all of Walker's guards, finding Danny shouldn't be too hard. In fact, you go to Walker to get his help while I'll get the royal guards to help us out"

"Sounds likes a plan" Dani agreed.

"You two be careful," Tucker advised them. "We don't want you two to be kidnapped as well"

"We'll be careful," Dani promised.

When the girls got to Fenton Works, they wasted no time in opening the portal and heading inside. Speeding off, they headed towards their respective destinations, all the while continuing to search, seeing if they could find any evidence of Vlad being in the area. Dani arrived at Walker's prison first.

"Your highness, what brings you here?" Walker asked politely.

"We need your help," Dani explained.

"Help with what, exactly?" Walker asked.

"Vlad, he's back," Dani informed him, surprising the law enforcer.

"You're joking, right?" Walker replied.

"I wish I was," Dani replied. "But it's true. Vlad's back and he's holding Danny hostage"

"Where are they?" Walker asked her.

"We don't know, we need your help finding them," Dani explained.

"I'll get right on it, my boys will do a full sweep of the Ghost Zone until we find them," Walker said before handing Dani a communicator. "Take this communicator so I can let you know if we find them,"

"Thanks for your help," Dani said before flying off to continue the search for Danny.

Meanwhile, Sam was rallying the guards to assist in the search for Danny. Some stayed behind at the castle to make sure there were no intrusions. The guards spread out, determined to search over every inch of the Ggost Zone until they found the king, no matter how long it would take them. Eventually Dani and Sam met back up with each other, each of them coming up empty handed.

"Did you find them?" Dani asked Sam.

"No luck, how about you?" Sam replied.

"Nothing, not a single trace" Dani said.

Plasmius had waited until most of the guards had cleared out in search of the missing king before making his move. He dragged a struggling Danny by his neck towards the castle, immediately catching the attention of the guards at the door.

"You!?" One guard yelled as he and his comrade raised their weapons at Vlad. "You are already a wanted man in both the human and Ghost Zone, I suggest you release the king right now before you suffer dire consequences"

"If I were you, I'd put down your weapons" Vlad told them as he pulled out a knife and held it to Danny's throat. "Unless you want me to kill your beloved King"

With no other choice, the guards reluctantly backed down, lowering their weapons and allowing Plasmius inside the castle. Plasmius quickly called in the rest of his rebels to overrun the rest of the guards. Plasmius kept Danny chained up and his side to make absolutely sure none of the other guards would attempt a daring rescue. Plasmius laughed to himself, convinced that he had already won. Just one more thing that needed to be taken care of.

Sam and Dani were still searching when suddenly Sam's cell phone went off. Called ID said that it was Danny calling to FaceTime, but Sam and Dani knew it was probably Vlad setting another trap. With no other way to find Danny, Sam took the call. Neither girl was surprised when Vlad's face appeared on the screen.

"Hello girls, pleasure to see you again" Vlad mocked them. "I'm pretty sure you're aware of the reason for this call, but just in case, I'll tell you. I want Samantha to bring the Ring of Rage to me. I'm not hard to find, in fact, I'm currently lounging around in your castle"

Plasmius pulled a now gagged Danny into the shot before continuing. "Bring the Ring of Rage to me within the next 3 hours or Daniel will go from half ghost to full ghost. Come alone and you have my word that I'll release him"

Danny protested, shouting into his gag, but said gag made his words unintelligible.

"I look forward to seeing you" Plasmius said before hanging up.

"So what are you going to do?" Dani asked Sam.

"I don't have any other choice but to bring the ring to Vlad" Sam said.

"You know it's a trap, right?" Dani asked.

"Of course," Sam replied. "We both know Vlad has no intention of keeping his word"

"Then take this," Dani said, giving Sam the tiny communicator Walker had gave to her. "It's a communicator Walker gave me. When you escape, you can let us know when we can storm the castle and put an end to the rebellion once and for all"

"Will do," said Sam as she flew off.

**In The Next Chapter:**

_**Sam was on her way to free some more soldiers when she was suddenly ambushed and knocked flat on her back. She looked up at her attacker and saw Penelope Spectra standing floating above her. **_

_**"You pesky brats are quite an annoyance," Spectra said, smiling wickedly. "I told that fruit loop he should've kept a closer eye on you and Danny; now I'm left cleaning up this mess" **_

_**Penelope tried hitting Sam while she was down, but Sam rolled out of the way and nailed Spectra with a kick to the jaw. Spectra charged at Sam, pinning her against the wall before Sam used both feet to kick her off. **_

_**"Why are you allied with Vlad anyway?" Sam asked as she attacked Penelope and kicked her the chest. "You have nothing to gain if he succeeds"**_

_**"That's where you're wrong," Spectra replied, recovering quickly and blasting Sam in the face. "When Vlad takes over the world and rules it with an iron fist, I'll be able to feed off of everyone's resulting misery to become much more powerful than I already am"**_

_**"Don't get your hopes up, Vlad's plans never succeed" Sam told Spectra as she grabbed her arm, smashed it into her knee and sending her flying with a blast. "And I doubt today's going to be the day that that changes"**_

_**"And who's going to stop us?" Penelope replied as she changed from her human form to her shadowy ghost form and wrapped her tail around Sam's neck, intending to strangle her to death. Sam struggled, trying to get Penelope's tail from around her neck, but every time she tried, Spectra just choked harder. "Look at you, you can barely hold your own in battle"**_

_**Sam used quick thinking and bit Spectra's tail. Spectra immediately released Sam and grabbed her tail. She tried to backhand Sam, but Sammy dodged, grabbed her arm and elbowed Spectra in the face. Sam grabbed Spectra by the back of her head and tried ramming her face first into the wall but Spectra blocked it and hit Sam in the gut. Spectra poked Sam in the eyes and took advantage of the temporarily blinded halfa by smashing her head first into the wall. **_

**Eddie: Hello, friends. Yadonushi's busy at the moment prepping for his public speech class so I decided to do him a favor and update for him. **

**Peter: You're actually doing something for Yadonushi? What's your motive?**

**Eddie: It's my one good deed of the day! Anyways, as our Yadonushi would say: "Peace out and have a great day!"**


	14. The Exchange

**God Save The Queen Chapter 13: The Exchange **

When Sam arrived at the castle, she found that it was overrun by rebels. Two of the rebels immediately approached her upon her arrival. They carried the firearm like weapons and instructed the queen to put her hands in the air.

"It's about time you got here," One rebel said as his companion frisked Sam to make sure she didn't have any weapons. "Way to keep Boss waiting"

After making sure she had no weapons, the rebels escorted Sam inside. Vlad was sitting on the throne, but Danny was nowhere to be seen. Naturally, Sam became nervous, worrying if Vlad had killed him.

"I was expecting you to be here sooner, with your husband's life at stake and everything" Vlad said, smiling deviously. "However, that's not important at the moment. Did you bring the ring like I instructed?"

"Right here, fruit loop" Sam said, taking the ring off her finger and holding it so that Vlad could see it.

"Well don't keep me waiting any longer, hand it over," Vlad demanded as the two rebels prodded Sam in the back with their weapons. Sam wasted little time tossing Vlad the ring. Vlad laughed and said "Shame you haven't realized I'm not to be trusted. Lock her up in the dungeon"

"Wow, totally didn't see that one coming" Sam quipped, rolling her eyes as the two guards seized her.

"Should we lock her in the same room as her hubby?" One guard asked.

"Don't be stupid," Vlad chastised the guard for his stupid question. "I don't even want her in the same cell block as Daniel. Make sure they are as far away as possible"

"Yes sir" The guards said before taking Sam away.

The guards locked Sam in a cell on the opposite side of the castle of Danny's. In his eagerness however, Vlad had forgotten to use the Plasmius Maximus to neutralize Sam's powers. Even if he had though, it would've only delayed Sam's escape. Two guards were assigned to watch over her and make sure she didn't try to escape.

"I can't believe I've got to spend the whole afternoon watching after this bitch" one guard lamented.

"Don't let it bother you too much," The other guard told him. "As soon as the Boss takes care of the former king's allies, he'll deal with the both of them."

"I know, but I have better things to do than play babysitter" The guard said.

"Listen, why don't you take a break, I'll handle her" The other guard said.

"Thanks a bunch, I owe you one" the other guard said as he departed, leaving only one guard to keep an eye on Sam.

As soon as the coast was clear, Sam changed into her human form, walked straight through the door, changed back into her ghost form and knocked the remaining guard out before he had time to react. Knowing that a rebel could walk by at any minute, Sam quickly went invisible and started exploring the castle, looking to find Danny's cell. Sam successfully managed to evade all the guards until she found Danny's cell. There were two guards standing right outside the door. Remaining invisible, Sam walked in between the two guards and knocked them out by bashing their heads together. Sam switched back into her human form and walked through the door and into Danny's cell. Danny was chained to the wall with, preventing him from moving an inch.

"Sam? How'd you escape?" Danny asked.

"This is the Ghost Zone, human and man made objects go right through material here," Sam reminded him.

"If only these chains worked the same way" Danny said, struggling to break his restraints.

"Let me help you out of those," Sam said before pulling the hair grip out of her hair and using it to unlock the shackles around Danny's hands and feet.

Upon being freed, Danny immediately rubbed his sore wrists, which had strong red marks and even a few cuts on them from being chained from so long.

"Are you going to be okay?" Sam asked.

"I've lost all feeling in my hands, but I should be alright as soon circulation gets back to normal" Danny said. "So now that we've broken free, what do we do? Vlad's has all the guards locked up in cells and now he has both the Ring and the Crown."

"Well while we were searching for you, Dani ran into Walker who gave us a communicator to contact him if we get into trouble" Sam told him.

Sam removed her left boot and sock to reveal the little communicator she had managed to smuggle inside. Thank god Vlad's minions were so incompetent. Sam handed the communicator to Danny so he could call Walker for reinforcements while Sam called Dani on her cell phone. Walker and Dani told the couple that they would be there shortly.

"So, we have some time; wanna free the our soldiers so they can help?" Sam asked.

"The more help we have, the better" Danny said.

The two switched to their human forms and walked through the door. Splitting up, they stealthily incapacitated all the rebel guards before freeing their soldiers from their cells. The rebel guards that weren't knocked out quickly started to realize what was happening and rallied together. Pretty soon, the lower chambers of the castle had descended into chaos with the soldiers fighting against the rebels.

Sam was on her way to free some more soldiers when she was suddenly ambushed and knocked flat on her back. She looked up at her attacker and saw Penelope Spectra standing floating above her.

"You pesky brats are quite an annoyance," Spectra said, smiling wickedly. "I told that fruit loop he should've kept a closer eye on you and Danny; now I'm left cleaning up this mess"

Penelope tried hitting Sam while she was down, but Sam rolled out of the way and nailed Spectra with a kick to the jaw. Spectra charged at Sam, pinning her against the wall before Sam used both feet to kick her off.

"Why are you allied with Vlad anyway?" Sam asked as she attacked Penelope and kicked her the chest. "You have nothing to gain if he succeeds"

"That's where you're wrong," Spectra replied, recovering quickly and blasting Sam in the face. "When Vlad takes over the world and rules it with an iron fist, I'll be able to feed off of everyone's resulting misery to become much more powerful than I already am"

"Don't get your hopes up, Vlad's plans never succeed" Sam told Spectra as she grabbed her arm, smashed it into her knee and sending her flying with a blast. "And I doubt today's going to be the day that that changes"

"And who's going to stop us?" Penelope replied as she changed from her human form to her shadowy ghost form and wrapped her tail around Sam's neck, intending to strangle her to death. Sam struggled, trying to get Penelope's tail from around her neck, but every time she tried, Spectra just choked harder. "Look at you, you can barely hold your own in battle"

Sam used quick thinking and bit Spectra's tail. Spectra immediately released Sam and grabbed her tail. She tried to backhand Sam, but Sammy dodged, grabbed her arm and elbowed Spectra in the face. Sam grabbed Spectra by the back of her head and tried ramming her face first into the wall but Spectra blocked it and hit Sam in the gut. Spectra poked Sam in the eyes and took advantage of the temporarily blinded halfa by smashing her head first into the wall.

Meanwhile, Dani had arrived to the battle before Walker and his reinforcements and saw that the fight had made its way outside of the castle. Despite most of the castle guards being freed, the battle between the rebels and soldiers was currently one sided and in the rebels' favor. Dani was curious as to where Vlad was since he wasn't taking part in the battle. She was going to assist in battle before being confronted by Vlad's other ally, Technus.

"Well if it isn't the runt of the litter?" Technus taunted her. "Are you here to try and save the day?"

"Oh, and I suppose you're going to stop me from doing that?" Dani replied. "What are you going to do? Talk me to death?"

"Laugh while you can, child; we'll see if you can keep that sense of humor once I'm through with you" Technus replied before attacking Dani.

Dani, although she lacked the size advantage, made up for it with her speed and agility. She easily managed to avoid all of Technus' attack attempts. Technus hurled lightning bolts at Dani at break neck speed. Dani was the least bit deterred and actually flew through the assault and punched Technus in the face. Technus made a frantic grab at Dani, but Dani was too quick and kicked him in the neck. Technus rolled to the side but was taken down by a knee to the face.

"I think it's time I took this fight more seriously," Technus said.

"That'd be a refreshing change of pace" Dani mocked him.

Technus ignored her remark and began concentrating. Instantly, the rebels' weapons were ripped from their hands and converged on the mad scientist technopath. Technus used the weapons to transform and take on the form of a giant mecha. Mecha-Technus' left arm had a Gatling gun at the end of it and the right arm had a rapid firing cannon at the end.

"Let's see how tough you are now!" Mecha-Technus yelled before he tried stomping on Dani.

Dani quickly rolled out of the way and tried blasting Technus, who swatted the attack away. Technus fired his Gatling gun arm at Dani, forcing the young halfa to run and duck for cover, barely managing to avoid being turned into Swiss cheese. Any ghost that got caught in the crossfire, whether they be soldier or rebel, were instantly killed.

"Technus, please be more careful!" The rebels begged their second in command as they tried to avoid being gunned down. "We don't want to die again!"

Mecha-Technus largely ignored his soldiers' pleas and continued his single minded pursuit of Dani.

"Kills his own soldiers chasing down a single ghost? No way that could possibly backfire later," Dani pointed out Technus' stupidity.

Technus, despite his huge size in this new form, was quite quick and continued chasing after Dani, trying to crush her beneath his feet. Meanwhile, Walker and his forces had arrived and joined in on the battle.

"Oh great, the pigs!" One rebel moaned as the battle became more even.

Technus had Dani cornered and it seemed that the end was near for Phantom's daughter until some of Walker's officers distracted him by attacking him. Walker approached Dani while his officers were dealing with Technus.

"Where's Danny and Sam?" Walker asked her.

"I don't know, I haven't seen them at all," Dani said, becoming worried that Plasmius might have caught and killed them.

"You stay here," Walker ordered her. "I'll go see if I can find them"

While all this was going on, Danny was doing his part in freeing his soldiers. Danny heard the ongoing battle outside and knew he had to hurry. It was easy to see that things were escalating and if Danny couldn't manage to step in soon, both sides could be destroyed. Danny ran down the corridor to free the last set of prisoners when suddenly one of the doors opened and slammed into his face, knocking him down.

"I'm getting real tired of your games!" Vlad growled as he yanked Danny to his feet.

**In The Next Chapter: **

_**Danny grabbed Vlad's arm and then kicked Vlad in the shoulder. Danny went for a punch but Vlad caught his arm. Unlike last time, Danny head butted him, causing him to let go. While Plasmius grabbed at his head, Danny kicked him in the stomach. He delivered three punches to Plasmius' face and then hurled Vlad into the air. Danny flew after him, intending to use a charge attack, but Vlad stopped himself and shot an ectoblast at Danny. Danny dodged, but was hit by a giant hammer Plasmius formed with his ecto energy. Danny landed hard on one of the islands and Plasmius tried goomba stomping him. Danny was quick enough to roll out of the way and Plasmius was prepared and kicked at him. Danny barely managed to react in time and dodge the kick. Danny knew he couldn't take too many hits to the head since he probably had a concussion from his earlier encounter with Vlad. **_

_**When Danny got closer enough, Vlad used his Ghost Stinger ability to give Danny a small shock and then uppercutted him into the air. Vlad followed after him and attacked him with a barrage of punches and kicks before elbowing him into the ground. **_

_**"I'm feeling a bit merciful," Vlad said as he floated over to Danny and kicked the boy onto his back. He grabbed Danny by his hair and said "If you surrender now, I'll make your death quick and painless". Danny gave his response by spitting blood in his face. Vlad smashed Danny's face into the ground and said "Have it your way, this just makes it more fun for me!" **_

_**Dani and Sam were about to jump in to help Danny, but Danny gave them a quick glare, letting them know to stay out of the fight for now. He didn't want Plasmius to become aware of their presence and wanted them to stay hidden out of view. **_

_**Vlad charged up a huge blast and prepared to put an end to Danny Phantom. Plasmius smirked before firing. The blast ended up reducing the island the two had been fighting on to nothing but chunks of stone. Plasmius looked around, certain he had gotten rid Danny and was surprised when Danny drop kicked him right in the face. Plasmius went flying, crashing into another island. **_

_**"Pesky little-" He snarled as he got to his feet. He felt someone tap him on the shoulder and turned around only to meet Danny's fist. He swung wildly at Danny, who with incredible speed, disappeared and reappeared behind him, kicking him in the back. **_

**Well, the "Coronation/Rebellion" story arc is almost over. Only one more chapter to go. As you can tell from the preview, in the next chapter, Danny and Vlad collide in their biggest and most vicious fight ever. Don't miss it! Anyway I've been Timothy D and have a great day!**


	15. Battle for the Throne

**God Save The Queen Chapter 14: Battle for the Throne **

Danny quickly reacted and threw a punch at Vlad, who easily caught Danny by the wrist and knocked him back down. Danny noticed that Vlad was wearing both the ring and the crown, resulting in the billionaire having an ominous red aura surrounding him. As soon as Danny got back to his feet, Plasmius slammed him face first into the ground.

"I am going to savor this moment" Vlad said as he hoisted Danny up to his feet only to slam a dungeon door into his face again.

On the other side of the castle, Sam and Spectra's fight was ongoing. Spectra lunged at Sam only for Sam to shoot a blast into her eye. Spectra grabbed at her eye allowing Sam to grab her by her tail and swing her from side to side, slamming her into the wall repeatedly. Penelope wiggled out of Sam's grip and clawed at her neck, trying to wrap her hands around her throat. Sam sidestepped her attempts at attacking, grabbed her by her head and smashed it into her knee. Sam grabbed Penelope's arm and twisted it behind her back. Penelope managed to get out of Sam's grasp by grabbing Sam by her hair and flipping her over. Sam landed on her feet and kicked backwards, striking Spectra on the chin. Spectra used her ectoplasmic energy to create a giant fist and tried crushing Sam to death with it. Her attempts were unsuccessful as Sam was quick enough to move out the way.

Just when Sam thought the fight was almost over, Penelope's assistant Bertand, attacked her, kicking her in the neck and knocking her to the ground. Sam's body twitched slightly as she lied motionless.

"Sure did take your time to get here," Spectra said to Bertrand, criticizing him for being late to the battle.

"I don't know if you've noticed this, but this castle's literally turned into a war zone" Bertrand said stoically. "You're lucky I could get to you in time, it appears as if you were close to being defeated,"

"As if I would be beaten by a girl who's had her powers for less than a month," Penelope retorted.

While the two were arguing, Sam was lying motionless on the ground. After being kicked by Bertand, Sam was completely paralyzed for a few seconds and she feared her neck might be broken. Taking advantage of her temporarily helpless foe, Spectra pummeled Sam for several minutes unmercifully. After being decimated for a few minutes, Sam finally managed to regain mobility. Whether it was because of her healing factor or if she was just stunned for a couple of minutes from the kick. Either way, Sam was thankful she could move again and slowly pulled herself to her feet and intercepted a punch from Spectra.

"Still have some fight in you, I'm impressed," Spectra said. "Despite being hopelessly outmatched, you still press on. I'm going to enjoy crushing your spirit,"

"Yeah, good luck with that," Sam said as she ducked to avoid another sneak attack from Bertrand and hit Spectra using a roundhouse kick.

Bertrand grabbed Sam from behind and tried holding her in place so Penelope could attack. Sam managed to duck down and out of Bertrand's hold, causing Spectra to blast Bertrand into the wall.

"Wow, didn't think you two would be stupid enough to actually try something like that," Sam taunted them. "Haven't you ever seen any cartoon ever?"

"Don't get so cocky, I'm still more than capable of wiping the floor with you, brat!" Spectra yelled, growing increasingly desperate to finish Sam off.

"Oh yeah, prove it" Sam retorted, growing impatient. "Why don't you and your lapdog just leave before you humiliate yourself more than you already have?"

"At least my "lapdog" is a better friend than you," Spectra said, formulating a plan. "At least he never didn't get me half killed in a lab accident,"

"What?!" Sam exclaimed.

"I mean, if you think about it, everything that's happened and is currently ha happening is your fault!" Spectra said, taking advantage of Sam's surprise by sucker punching her. "You persuade Danny into stepping into his parents ghost portal, he accidentally activates it while inside and half kills himself. How do you live with the fact that you could've killed your best friend just because you were curious about what was on the other side of the portal?"

"It was an accident, I never intended for anything like this to happen?" Sam defended herself, so distracted that she was taken down by a simple ectoblast. As she got to her feet, Bertrand hit her from behind, sending her forward and into a brutal kick to the face from Spectra.

"It doesn't matter if it was an accident or not, the bottom line is that you're the source of all of Danny's problems" Penelope said, pulling Sam to her feet and kneeing her in the ribs, driving the air out of Sam's body. Sam dropped to her knees and was almost knocked out by a punch form Spectra. "I'm surprise the boy ended up marrying you. If he had any common sense, he would've left you behind a long time ago,"

"Danny wouldn't do that," Sam replied. "We love each other no matter how many mistakes we've made."

"Does he really love you or is he just blinded by the fact that you're his childhood friend?" Penelope asked, feeding off the increasing feelings of doubt and guilt coming from Sam. "It's only a matter of time before your relationship crumbles"

"Screw you!" Sam muttered, throwing two punches at Spectra that were easily dodged.

"You know I'm telling the truth," Spectra said. "If you think about it, everything that's happened in Amity Park is your fault. If Danny didn't step inside his parents' portal, the ghosts wouldn't be able to access the human world. Danny never gets in trouble with Walker, Walker never invades Amity Park. Danny never indirectly becomes rivals with Plasmius, meaning Vlad doesn't end up accidentally putting the planet in the path of the Disasteroid. You're the catalyst for this very war if you think about it"

_"She's right, everything is my fault" Sam thought to herself, even taking it a step further. "Danny wouldn't have gotten his ghost powers, he wouldn't made so many enemies. Amity Park wouldn't have any ghost problems. Danny wouldn't have become public enemy number one. The Guys in White wouldn't be harassing Amity Park. Dan Phantom would have never been born." _

While Sam was caught up her thoughts, Penelope was beating the crap out of her. She had grown much stronger as a result of feeding off of Sam's guilt and was having no problems fighting the ghost girl. Penelope stopped thrashing Sam for a minute so she could gloat.

"I suppose some good did come out of your actions however," Penelope said. "Bertrand and I wouldn't have been freed or been able to pose as a therapist to feed off of teenagers' misery. Not to mention the fact that if Danny didn't get his powers, Vlad wouldn't have had any reason to create that annoying clone from you and Danny's DNA,"

Sam briefly thought about Dani and started catching on to Penelope's trick. _"I've got to hand it to her. Using my guilt over Danny's accident to make me miserable and herself stronger almost worked," Sam thought to herself. "It would've worked if she hadn't mentioned Danielle," _

Spectra appeared ready to finish Sam off when Sam took her by surprise with a sudden ectoblast.

"Why you little-" Penelope growled as Sam elbowed her in the side of the head, sending her flying into the wall.

"You're right," Sam admitted, back handing Bertrand. "A lot of the things that happened to Amity Park are my fault,"

"But if Danny hadn't gotten ghost powers you would've eventually escaped through Vlad's portal," Sam pointed out. "When Vlad freed Pariah Dark, no one would've been able to stop him. Embed would've brainwashed millions of teenagers and taken over the world; and there'd be no one to stop Vlad when he eventually did decide to take over the world"

Spectra charged at Sam, but Sam ducked and allowed Spectra to crash face first into the wall. Bertrand shape shifted into a ninja and launched shurikens at her. Sam threw up a shield and summoned vines from the ground, using them to tie up Penelope Spectra and her assistant.

"I'll get you for this, you little-" Penelope yelled before Sam gagged her with ectoplasm.

"Sounds great, but I've got to get going; see you around," Sam taunted them as she departed to assist in the battle outside.

#################################

Dani was still contending with Mecha-Technus. Mecha-Technus was alternating between firing with his machine gun and his cannon. Dani dodged the bullets and tried defending herself from the explosives by throwing up a shield. The shield barely defended Dani from the resulting explosion and flung her backwards.

The blast left her briefly stunned, but Dani had to get up and move quickly to avoid being gunned down and/ or blown to bits. Technus' soldiers were still getting caught in the crossfire, but some of the crazier ones still tried coming to Technus' aid, giving Dani even more problems to deal with. Between dodging anti ghost bullets from Technus, ducking out of the way of explosions, dodging even more bullets from Technus' soldiers, and avoiding the rebel suicide bombers, Dani struggled trying to come up with a way to hurt the technopath. If given the chance, she wouldn't hesitate to kick Plasmius' teeth down his throat.

"I feel like I'm in a video game boss battle," Dani said as she tricked Technus into mowing down even more rebels with his gunfire. A suicide bomber lunged at her, but Dani, using quick thinking, grabbed the bomber and tossed him at Technus. The bomber collided with Mecha-Technus' chest and exploded, causing Technus to stumble backwards and fall on his backside. When Technus got back up, there was a hole in the chest area from the explosion and sparks were flying from the injury. Dani smiled and thought to herself "_I think I've found a way to beat this techno freak" _

Dani turned to get the attention of the suicide bombers, at the same time not taking her eye off of Technus so she could evade all of his attacks. Dani whistled to attract their attention and yelled "Step it up, you psychotic ghostly bitches! You call yourself freedom fighters yet you can't manage to kill one single girl!"

Dani's ploy worked like a charm as the rebels all charged at her immediately. Dani thought it was hard enough surviving the hordes of rebels before. Now she had no margin for error and had to rely on her wits and strength as well as her speed to keep herself from getting killed. Dani managed it however and while dodging suicide bombers, grabbed some of them and tossed them towards Technus. After one bomber exploded near Technus' shoulder, Technus caught on to Dani's plan and began shooting at the bombers that Dani flung towards him. Technus managed to detonate a few of them from a distance but was ultimately forced to make a slight retreat. Firing rapidly, Technus held his own for a few minutes before one bomber got a little too close to the barrel of Technus' machine gun arm when he fired and exploded, destroying his right hand and leaving him with only his grenade launcher.

One would think this would handicap the mad scientist. Technus however decided he could use the high voltage exposed wires on his stub of his left arm as an improvised weapon. Technus tried firing powerful bolts of electricity at Dani… but that ended backfiring on him and briefly caused his mecha form to short circuit. That left him vulnerable to having another suicide bomber tossed at him. This one ended up blowing up a portion of his right leg. Another bomber completely blew off the remainder of his left arm. At this point, Technus went berserk and started firing grenades like crazy, trying to obliterate Dani. The only thing he succeeded in doing was killing more of his soldiers. Finally, the rebels had had enough of Technus' reckless behavior and lack of concern regarding their wellbeing.

"That's it! We just wanted to get a little respect for once! We didn't sign up to get massacred!" One rebel declared as he and a few of his friends tossed their armor aside and deserted Technus, leaving the battle altogether. "We quit!"

Even some of the suicide bombers were fed up with Technus' antics and removed their explosive vests. A few even tossed them at the madman.

Technus wasn't too concerned with his rebels abandoning him as his primary concern was killing Phantom's daughter.

"You're down an arm and a half a leg, most of your soldiers have abandoned you and you're on the verge of losing," Dani told him, while effortlessly fending off what few remaining rebels Technus had. "Why don't you just leave now while you still have some dignity?"

"I. WILL. NOT. LOSE. TO. A. MERE. CHILD!" Technus screamed.

"And there goes the last of your dignity," Dani quipped as she picked one of the abandoned bomber vests and hurled it at Technus' remaining arm.

Once again, Technus chose poor timing and fired just as the best collided with his cannon, causing a huge explosion that destroyed nearly the entire right half of his mecha form. Sparks flew and Mecha-Technus shook violently as the suit seemed to be on the verge of destruction. Technus abandoned his Mecha form and ejected, and not a moment too soon as the suit exploded immediately after. Technus was propelled into the ground hard by the explosion and knocked unconscious. Dani quickly froze him in a block of ice and handed him over to Walker's officers, breathing a sigh of relief as she dropped to her knees exhausted. She was prepared to call it a day when she heard a voice say "Ahem!" Dani looked up and saw a group of rebels standing above her.

"Have you forgotten about us?" One of them asked. "Now that that fool's out of the way, we can get back down to business,"

Dani got up and it looked as if she was going to fight them all. However, Dani merely sighed and said "I am not in the mood for this right now!". With a simple flick of the wrist Dani encased the rebels in solid ice, leaving them for Walker's authorities to pick up as well as she left to assist in the search for Danny and Sam.

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Danny dodged an attack from Plasmius and tried punching him, but Plasmius blocked both punches with his forearm and delivered a vicious uppercut. The uppercut had such power behind it that it nearly propelled Danny through the roof. Plasmius snatched Danny out of the air and held him by the back of his neck. Plasmius proceeded to deliver a series of punches to Danny's kidneys and lower back, causing Danny to cough up a little bit of blood. Vlad dropped Danny to the floor and placed his foot on Danny's head.

"What's wrong? Don't have anything left in the tank?" Plasmius mocked him. "Where's that fighting spirit of yours? You can't possibly be done already? Not even one of your legendary quips?"

Danny tried to give a response, but all that came out was a series of unintelligible mumbles.

"What's that? I couldn't quite hear you," Plasmius laughed. "I think you might have a collapsed lung, that always impedes the oratory,"

Plasmius then began gradually pressing down with his foot, slowly crushing Danny's skull. Danny screamed in pain as his head came closer and closer to reaching the crush point.

Vlad stopped for a moment and said "I want you to know what it feels like to have your hopes and dreams crushed right in front of you. I want you to go through the same pain I went through thanks to you and your idiot father!"

Plasmius was taking way too much joy in torturing the young king and was just on the verge of finishing the job when a surprise ecto blast knocked him into a suit of armor, which then toppled on him. Danny was barely conscious when he felt himself being lifted to his feet.

"Wake up, your majesty!" Walker barked as he tried bringing the king back to his senses. "Come on, you've got to restore order before the entire ghost zone ends up falling into disorder"

Danny finally regained his senses and was confused by Walker's presence. "Walker? What are you doing here?"

"I told you, it's ultimately my job to maintain order and lawfulness throughout the Ghost Zone," Walker reminded him. "If this prick takes over, the only thing that'll come from it is anarchy! Now you try and see if you can crush this rebellion once and for all. I'll hold off Vlad,"

"But you can't!" Danny protested. "Vlad's gotten his hands on both the Ring of Rage and the Crown of Fire, he's virtually unstoppable! You'll get destroyed!"

"That fool may have the crown and the ring but he doesn't know how to use them properly," Walker replied. "He'll probably end up burning himself out within a few minutes at this rate. And besides, even if I can't take him down, it'll give you valuable time to think up a way that you can. Now get going!"

Danny didn't hang around to debate any further and flew off to reunite with Sam. He did need some time to heal as Plasmius' beat down left him both exhausted and sore. Danny wondered if he even had what it took to overcome Vlad's raw power. Almost immediately after he left, Vlad got up from under the suit of armor and was immediately hit with another ectoblast from Walker. Vlad shook this attack off much more quickly than the last one.

"I admit, sacrificing yourself to buy Daniel some spare time is brave," Vlad complimented the officer. "But ultimately, staying behind to fight me was stupid, if not suicidal,"

"Oh really?" Walker replied.

"Do you honestly think you have what the power to beat me? Even without the ring and the crown, you wouldn't be able to stall, let alone defeat me," Vlad said. "You would hardly be a threat to me even in my base form."

"God, do you ever shut up?" Walker asked, irritated with Vlad's constant boasting. "Are you we going to fight or are you just going to give a speech about yourself?"

"If you're so eager to throw your unlife away, then so be it!" Plasmius said. "Just be warned, I won't be holding-"

Walker interrupted Vlad by sucker punching him. The attack did little aside from annoy fruit loop.

Plasmius' socked Walker in the stomach, then delivered a right and left hand to his face. Walker staggered back and Vlad elbowed him in the face then took him down with a leg sweep. Walker started to get up but Vlad wouldn't allow it and booted Walker in the face. Plasmius then tossed Walker into the air and delivered a soccer ball kick to the ghost's spine. Had Walker still been human, the kick would've easily cut him clean in half. Vlad caught Walker as he came back down and grabbed him by his neck.

"Perhaps now, you're realizing the mistake you've made by deciding to fight me?" Vlad taunted Walker, tightening his grip on the latter's neck. Walker only smirked and jabbed Vlad with a taser like device and shocked him. Plasmius completely no sold the effects of the device and asked "And what the hell was that supposed to do?"

Walker's smile quickly faded when he saw his weapon had no effect on Plasmius. The thing should've at least caused him some mild discomfort. Plasmius ripped the device from Walker's hand and crushed it into pieces.

"I would applaud you for your effort, but you never stood a chance to begin with," Plasmius said before unleashing a powerful red blast that almost completely disintegrated the law enforcer, leaving nothing but a puddle of ectoplasmic goo. With that minor distraction out of the way, Plasmius returned his attention to the task at hand. "Now to finish off the royal family and cement myself as King"

Danny had managed to get out of the castle and coincidentally ran into Dani and Sam. The girls both gave him a bone crushing hug upon being reunited with him.

"Are you okay?" Sam asked, noticing cuts and bruises on Danny's body that hadn't been there before.

"I'm fine, I just happened to run into Plasmius and-" Danny started to explain.

"And you beat him right?" Dani asked, interrupting him.

"Well, not exactly" Danny replied before Vlad emerged from the castle looking angrier than ever.

"Are you okay?! Is everyone okay?!" Plasmius mocked them before laughing. "At least you're all together, which saves me the trouble of hunting each of down individually"

"Leave them out of this, Plasmius; if we're going to settle this rivalry, we're going to fight Mano é Mano," Danny said.

Plasmius sighed and said "I suppose I can grant your dying wish. But after I kill you, I'm killing them too". Plasmius' rebels surrounded the three of them and cocked their weapons, anxious to kill the king. Plasmius held up a hand and order them to stand down. "I won't be requiring your assistance, he's mine"

"What do you say we take this battle elsewhere?" Danny proposed.

"Why, right here seems just fine," Vlad said. "Besides, it's a perfect place to mark your grave,"

"I just thought you wouldn't want to destroy your new castle fighting me," Danny said, hoping to use Vlad's ego against him to move the fight elsewhere so no bystanders would be injured.

"You know the thing is, I know you're tricking me; and you're right, let's take this fight elsewhere," Vlad said before he and Danny took off and flew to a more remote region of the Ghost Zone. After the two left, the rebels were starting to get a little trigger happy.

"I know boss told us not to kill you two," the rebel leader said as he raised his rifle. "But the boss ain't here right now,"

Dani and Sam dealt with the rebels rather quickly using their ice and vine powers respectively. After dealing with them, the girls followed Danny and Vlad just in case Danny needed help fighting Plasmius. Danny and Vlad had found a small archipelago to do battle on. The two enemies stared daggers at each other. Both knew that only one of them would be leaving following this fight.

"So it's come down to this," Vlad mused. "The final battle between eternal rivals. And to think you could've prevented all of this. The events of the past days, it's all on your hands"

"Says the petty manchild who throws a hissy fit when his money can't buy him what he wants," Danny replied. "When his superficial charms can't seduce his high school sweetheart, or can't win over his former best friend's family. A man who, despite having everything a person could ever want in life, decides it isn't enough and throws all of that away in a bid for even more power. A petty man who held a grudge for twenty years and tried to kill aforementioned former best friend over a honest accident. An accident that gave him the powers that allowed him to establish his empire. "Oh poor me, I'm a superpowered billionaire". How long are you going to blame everyone else for your own mistakes? You're nothing more than a psychopathic fruit loop"

"I wouldn't expect your naive little mind to understand my motives," Vlad retorted before flying over and punching Danny in the gut. Danny doubled over and tried to breathe. "And how many times must I tell you: I am not a fruit loop!"

Danny grabbed Vlad's arm and then kicked Vlad in the shoulder. Danny went for a punch but Vlad caught his arm. Unlike last time, Danny head butted him, causing him to let go. While Plasmius grabbed at his head, Danny kicked him in the stomach. He delivered three punches to Plasmius' face and then hurled Vlad into the air. Danny flew after him, intending to use a charge attack, but Vlad stopped himself and shot an ectoblast at Danny. Danny dodged, but was hit by a giant hammer Plasmius formed with his ecto energy. Danny landed hard on one of the islands and Plasmius tried goomba stomping him. Danny was quick enough to roll out of the way and Plasmius was prepared and kicked at him. Danny barely managed to react in time and dodge the kick. Danny knew he couldn't take too many hits to the head since he probably had a concussion from his earlier encounter with Vlad.

When Danny got closer enough, Vlad used his Ghost Stinger ability to give Danny a small shock and then uppercutted him into the air. Vlad followed after him and attacked him with a barrage of punches and kicks before elbowing him in the spine and sending him crashing into the ground.

"I'm feeling a bit merciful," Vlad said as he floated over to Danny and kicked the boy onto his back. He grabbed Danny by his hair and said "If you surrender now, I'll make your death quick and painless". Danny gave his response by spitting blood in his face. Vlad smashed Danny's face into the ground and said "Have it your way, this just makes it so much more satisfying"

Dani and Sam were about to jump in to help Danny, but Danny gave them a quick glare, letting them know to stay out of the fight for now. He didn't want Plasmius to become aware of their presence and wanted them to stay hidden out of view.

Vlad charged up a huge blast and prepared to put an end to Danny Phantom. Plasmius smirked before firing. The blast ended up reducing the island the two had been fighting on to nothing but chunks of stone. Plasmius looked around, certain he had gotten rid Danny and was surprised when Danny drop kicked him right in the face. Plasmius went flying, crashing into another island.

"Pesky little-" He snarled as he got to his feet. He felt someone tap him on the shoulder and turned around only to meet Danny's fist. He swung wildly at Danny, who with incredible speed, disappeared and reappeared behind him, kicking him in the back.

Danny disappeared once again before reappearing over Vlad's head, coming down for a double axe handle. Vlad blocked the attack using him forearms and knife edge chopped Danny across the chest. The force of the chop sent Danny flying and now it was time for Vlad to use his teleportation powers. He teleported behind Danny and kicked him in the other direction. Then he appeared in front of Danny and kicked him back the way he came. Plasmius teleported behind Danny once again and kicked him in a northwest direction. Plasmius teleported behind Danny once again and kicked him to the right. Plasmius continued playing his little game of human pinball before finally reappearing in front of Danny and backhanding him into the ground. Danny refused to give up so easily and despite being in intense pain, got back up to face Plasmius. Plasmius tried teleporting behind Danny and sneak attacking him, but Danny managed to sense his presence and intercepted him with an elbow to the stomach. Danny spun around and nailed Plasmius with a superman punch.

Plasmius spat out some blood and fired blast after blast at Danny. Danny dodged each and every blast before appearing in front of Plasmius and knocking him onto another island with a punch. Danny noticed that Plasmius' speed and reaction time was gradually decreasing, then remembered what Walker told him. Plasmius didn't know how to properly use the power of the crown or ring and was most likely using up all his stamina by using up his newfound power. Danny didn't necessarily have to beat Plasmius just yet, he just had to outlast him until he tired himself out. Danny flew over to the other island and was taken by surprise when Plasmius grabbed him from behind by his waist, lifted him up and dropped him on his head. With Danny dazed and confused, Plasmius took advantage by lifting Danny up and tossing him into a tomb like structure and nearly destroying it. Plasmius picked up a pillar from the tomb, and hit Danny across the face. He kneed Danny in the stomach and tossed him high into the air. He then grabbed Danny from behind in a bear hug before flipping upside down and flying towards the ground at max speed. Plasmius waited until the two were a few feet above the ground before letting go of Danny. Danny hit the ground so hard that it left a crater. Danny was rendered unconscious and reverted back to his human form, with the impact sending shockwaves that completely destroyed the nearby tomb. For a second, Plasmius thought he heard ominous laughter but quickly brushed it off, and grabbed a battered and bruised Danny by his shirt collar.

Plasmius only needed three words to proclaim his victory and said "Checkmate! I win".

Plasmius was about to finish off our hero when he heard Sam yell "Not yet!". Surprised, he looked up and was kicked in the face by Sammy Specter, and dropped Danny to the ground. Dani was floating alongside Sam and just as ready to fight.

"What is it with you people showing up out of nowhere and stopping me just before I can kill him?!" Plasmius exclaimed as he got back up, getting pretty fed up with people playing hero just when he was so close to victory. "You were going to die anyway! All you had to do was wait your turn! But since you're all so eager, I'll see if I can pencil you in!"

Sam wasted little time in attacking Vlad with a flurry of punches and kicks. Plasmius managed to avoid or block most of them, but Sam managed to get in a few good hits. Dani joined in by attacking Vlad from behind, kicking him in the back of his head. Plasmius was not amused and swung his fist backwards at Dani. Dani ducked and punched him in the nose. While he was distracted with Dani, Sam blasted him before summoning a group of vines out of the ground and dragging him beneath the surface until all but his head was submerged. Sam then took a few steps back before running and kicking Vlad as hard as she could in the face. Plasmius was briefly seeing stars but uprooted himself from the ground. When Dani tried executing a flying kick in him, Plasmius grabbed her out of the air by her leg and used her as a baseball bat by hitting Sam across the face. Plasmius then tossed Dani into Sam knocking them both to the ground. When Sam tried attacking him, Plasmius dodged her punch and grabbed her by the wrist flipping her onto her back. He then stomped on her arm as hard as he could, causing a sickening snap to ring out. Sam cried out in pain and clutched her now broken arm, but didn't let them injury stop her, firing eye beams at Vlad.

Vlad deflected the eye beams and jumped onto Sam's chest. Sam coughed and blood started pouring out of her mouth. Dani tried coming to her aid, but Plasmius dealt with her with a simple blast. Danny regained consciousness just in time to see his wife and daughter being pummeled by his archenemy. Plasmius noticed this as Dani and Sam both got up with the intention to continue fighting. Plasmius had to hand it to them, they both had the same determination as Danny. Somehow they were still fighting as if nothing had happened. Plasmius smiled and knocked them flat on their back with an energy wave. Plasmius then walked back over to Danny who was trying to get back up to help the girls.

"I have to admit, you're all quite persistent. If fact, I think maybe I'll spare the girls," Plasmius said, laughing. "Maybe I'll keep them even keep around as slaves,"

Danny instantly changed back into his ghost form and socked Plasmius in the face. Plasmius stumbled backwards and was instantly met with a barrage of punches. The punches were thrown so fast that he didn't see them until Danny's fist collided with his face. Vlad flew into the air and started charging up a huge blast, intending to destroy the entire archipelago and everyone on it. Danny caught on immediately and cupped his hands at his hip, charging ecto energy to fire a counter blast. Plasmius fired at the same time Danny brought his hands forward and fired his blast. The two beams collided with each other and were at a standstill. Danny didn't know how long he could keep it up however. There was no doubt Plasmius was using up much of his stamina firing the blast, but Danny wondered if he could keep the beam war at a standstill until Plasmius burned himself out.

"This is it, Daniel! Your final stand! You can't possibly hope to win! Now perish, along with your pathetic family!" Vlad screamed as his blast started overcoming Danny's.

"We're not giving up that easily!" Dani yelled as she and Sam assisted Danny by firing blasts of their own.

Their help allowed Danny to keep the beam war even until slowly, Plasmius' blast started to lose power. Finally, Danny, Sam, and Danny managed to overwhelm Vlad's blast and sent him blasting off like Team Rocket. All three of them knew the battle was far from over however.

"You two get out of here, I can take it from here," Danny told him.

"Are you crazy? We're not leaving you to fight him alone," Sam said.

"Don't worry about me," Danny said. "He's got almost nothing left in the tank, I can handle him"

"Are you sure you can take him?" Dani asked.

"I know I can, now get out of here. Now!" Danny ordered them.

The two did leave but made sure not to go too far. After a few minutes, Plasmius came back down. He looked absolutely livid, but he was breathing heavily.

"What's the matter? Can't keep up?" Danny said with a smirk. It was obvious from this point on that Plasmius didn't stand a chance of winning. Still the fruit loop persisted.

"Don't count me out just yet, I've still got a few tricks up my sleeve," Plasmius said before charging at Danny.

The rivals simultaneously hit each other with punches to the jaw that sent shockwaves throughout the Ghost Zone and made them stumble backwards. They then cocked their fists and punched each other again, once again stumbling backwards from the punch, and then punched each other a third time. Both Danny and Vlad spat out blood before continuing their fight to the death. Danny dodged a fourth punch from Vlad and kneed him in the stomach, before karate chopping him in the neck. Plasmius took a swing at Danny, but Danny easily dodged and elbowed him beneath the chin. Danny kicked Plasmius in the air and bombarded him with blasts. Plasmius crashed landed at Danny's feet and tried to surprise Danny with a sudden leg sweep, but Danny jumped. Plasmius was starting to grow frustrated and managed to land a punch to Danny's face. Danny staggered backwards and Plasmius took the opportunity to hit him with a double axe handle. Danny caught Plasmius by surprise however with a backflip kick, then grabbed Plasmius by the back of his head and pulling Vlad backwards, bringing Vlad's back crashing against his knee, resulting in a loud crack.

"It's obvious you're running on reserves so why don't you just face the fact that you've lost?" Danny taunted him. Plasmius tried punching Danny multiple times but Danny dodged all of them with ease.

"What's going on? Why can't I hit you?" Plasmius asked, starting to grow desperate.

"Because you've used up all your energy by trying to defeat me using your raw power," Danny explained. "While the Crown and Ring together do give you tremendous power, if you don't know how to use the power or if you're not used to having so much, you'll quickly tire yourself out. You didn't pace yourself and thus exhausted yourself in a matter of minutes"

"Regardless, I still have enough to finish you off!" Plasmius growled before charging at Danny.

Danny then unleashed his ultimate attack, the Ghostly Wail. Plasmius was instantly knocked back by it as Danny made sure not to hold anything back. Plasmius tried powering through it, but ultimately the Ghostly Wail proved to be too much for as he was propelled through several of the islands before landing on the very last one. The attack caused him to revert to his human form and left him near death as Danny flew over to him. Danny quickly snatched the Ring off his finger and took the crown off his head. Vlad looked up and saw Danny holding his glowing green hand at his head.

"It's over Vlad," Danny said, more than prepared to kill his nemesis in cold blood.

"Not yet, you may have won today, but I'll be back," Vlad said weakly. "You know I always come back"

Vlad then quickly used his teleportation powers to get the hell out of dodge just as Danny fired the would-be killing shot. Danny changed back into his human form as he stopped to catch his breath. The battle was over, the rebels had been crushed and he had defeated Vlad… again. It didn't feel like a victory though. With Vlad still alive and somewhere out there, Danny knew it would only be a matter of time before the two inevitably crossed paths yet again. Next time, he wouldn't waste time gloating and would just kill the fruit loop. Until then, however, all Danny could do was try to relax.

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Danny, Sam, and Dani were glad this whole rebellion thing was finally over. There were still a few rebels left, but without Vlad's leadership or Technus' technology they weren't much of a threat. Most of the rebels from the invasion had been captured following the climactic battle. With the rebellion behind them, Danny and Sam could now focus on their reign as monarchs. Right now though, the Phantom family were going to take some time off to allow their injuries to heal and finish their senior year in high school. Clockwork was watching them, proud of how they handled the rebellion and knew that the three could handle anything thrown at them.

**Gentlemen, we've done it. We finished our first story arc! **

**Eddie: F yeah we did, Yadonushi! **

**Peter: I knew we could do it! **

**I'd like to thank you all for sticking around. I hope the payoff was worth it. I did my best writing the final battle, but for some reason I feel like it wasn't enough. Let me know what you think. Don't think the story is over just yet, it'll continue a bit longer. The next chapter will be the start of a breather mini arc before moving on to the next major story arc. A few author notes: I really didn't do a good job explain the rebels motivation. Most of the rebels were just nameless ghosts without any of the special abilities or intellect of Danny's rogue gallery. Most of them were humiliated by Danny on a daily basis. They wanted power so they could get a little respect and saw Vlad as a way of getting that respect. I know it probably doesn't matter now that he arc is over, but just thought I'd explain. On an unrelated note, for some reason I just think of Technus as being the ghost of Nikola Tesla's cousin or something. It's just one of my little head canons. Also, I was originally planning for Skulker and Valerie to take part in the climax in some form, but I couldn't figure out a way to work them into the final battle. Valerie will play a major role in the next major story arc. Anyway as always I've been Timothy D, have a great day and peace out. **

**In The Next Chapter: **

_**Once again, a nightmare interrupted his peaceful slumber. He still didn't know how a ghost could even have nightmares. Then again, he barely remembered anything about his human life. Maybe these nightmares were hints from his subconscious trying to help him regain memories of the life he had lead. Knowing he wasn't going to get anymore sleep, he arose. Might as well get started haunting humans, even though no one took him serious. **_

_**################################# **_

_**"In other news today," said the news anchor on TV. "Today marks the 60th anniversary of the execution of Maurice Allan, aka The Amity Park Butcher. During his reign of terror which resulted in many Amity Park residents living in fear, Maurice murdered 26 men, women, and children."**_


	16. Chapter 15

**God Save The Queen Chapter 15: Origins **

_So it had come to this, the infamous "last mile". The supreme penalty reserved only for the worst of the worst. Shackled from head to toe, the prisoner was lead by burly guards to his punishment. A priest accompanied him, reciting Psalms 23, hoping to get him to repent at the last minute. _

_"He restores my soul: He leads me in the paths of righteousness for thy name's sake" _

_The prisoner blocked out the words of the priest. He had gone way too far for any hope of salvation. Whether repented for his sins or not, his soul was condemned to the deepest depths of Hell. The prisoner shed a single tear, reflecting on the events leading up to today. Maybe he felt a slight twinge of remorse, but he refused to show it. _

_"Thou prepares a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anoints my head with oil; my cup runneth over" _

_The prisoner looked to his left. Behind a glass window he saw grieving families, all waiting to see him get his just desserts. Some stared with tear stained faces, other stared with nothing but pure contempt. A few even had looks of joy, taking pleasure in the fact that his life was coming to an end. A few jeered and hurled insults at him, telling they hoped he "rotted in hell". The prisoner smiled wickedly, they'd get their wish but nothing could ever bring back all the lives he took. The prisoner didn't even put up a struggle as the guards strapped him into the electric chair. _

_"Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. Amen" the priest finished the verse before stepping aside as he commissioner approached the condemned man to read him his sentence. _

_"Maurice P. Allan, for 26 counts of murder, kidnapping, false imprisonment, 3 counts of assault, and 2 counts of break and entering, you have been sentenced to death," The commissioner read to the condemned man. "Have you any last words?" _

_Maurice's lips quickly formed a sinister smile as he started to speak "You may have caught me and this may be my last day on Earth, but this is far from the end. I will live on in your memories. I will haunt your mind, I will be fear that keeps you wake, every shadow on the wall will invoke thoughts of me, I will make up every nightmare in your skull. I offer one simple word of advice: Beware!" _

_The executioner pulled the switch and almost immediately Maurice began convulsing as titanic bolts of electricity cackled through his body. _

Maurice awoke from his slumber and nearly jumped out of his skin. Once again, a nightmare interrupted his peaceful slumber. He still didn't know how a ghost could even have nightmares. Then again, he barely remembered anything about his past. Maybe these nightmares were hints from his subconscious trying to help his regain the lost memories of the life he once had. Knowing he wasn't going to get anymore sleep, he arose. Might as well get started haunting humans, even though no one took him serious. He was the butt monkey of the Ghost Zone. Still he held hope, maybe today things would change.

Danny woke up and stretched, being careful not to aggravate any of his injuries from his fight with Plasmius yesterday. His ribs and head were taped up following the fight. Slowly he got out of bed and headed to the bathroom to take a cold shower. The cold water helped soothe the sore spots on his body and ease the pain slightly. After 15 minutes, Danny stepped out of the shower and got dressed before joining his family downstairs in the kitchen. His dad was tinkering with some new invention while his mother was cooking breakfast on the stove.

"Morning sleeping beauty," his mother greeted him, as she finished with the pancakes. "I know you're probably hungry, but breakfast is almost ready; just a little bit longer."

"Don't worry about it mom, I can wait a couple minutes," Danny assured her.

"I bet you must've been pretty tired from fighting ghosts yesterday, making your mother and I so proud," Jack said, giving his son a friendly pat on the back. Danny collapsed to the ground as pain shot through his back. "Oops, I didn't mean to hit you so hard son. I guess I don't know my own strength"

"It's not your fault, Dad," Danny told him. "Dani, Sam, and I just got a little hurt fighting a lot of ghosts yesterday,"

"Have you ever thought of just taking a day off?" Jazz asked him as she and Jack helped lift Danny to his feet. "Fighting ghosts as much as you do can't be good for your health,"

"I'm used to getting beat up by ghosts," Danny told her. "I'll be 100% again in no time"

"Jazz is right, Danny; you need to take a break before you end up seriously hurting yourself," Maddie said.

"But mom, I have a healing factor; I can heal from almost any injury in record time," Danny argued. "And besides, who's going to fight ghosts while I'm taking a break?"

"Don't worry Danny boy! Your mother and I are more than capable of handling things," Jack tried to assure his son before the gadget he was working on spat smoke in his face.

"Even if we're not as capable as you are Danny, your father's right," Maddie agreed. "Now until you are 110% at full health, I don't want you fighting any ghosts whatsoever"

"But-" Danny tried to protest.

"No buts, no fighting ghosts until you're all better," Maddie said as she handed Danny his plate. "And by the way, tell Dani and Sam the same goes for them,"

"In other news today," said the news anchor on TV. "Today marks the 50th anniversary of the execution of Maurice Allan, aka The Amity Park Butcher. During his reign of terror which had many Amity Park residents living in fear, Maurice murdered 26 men, women, and children. The Butcher was finally caught when police arrested him after a woman he tried to abduct managed to slip away. Today a vigil will be held to honor the victims of the Butcher's massacre."

"I can't believe it's been 50 years since The Butcher was executed," Maddie said.

"We're you alive during his reign of terror?" Jazz asked her.

"No, I was born six years after the Butcher's death. My parents would tell stories about how his ghost still haunted Amity Park," Maddie explained.

"Well I've never encountered a ghost claiming to be some serial killer so it's safe to say those were just stories," Danny said confidently. He quickly finished his food before heading out the door. "I'm going to hang out with Sam and Tucker, I'll be back before dinner"

"Alright, have fun sweetie!" Maddie said. "And remember: No fighting any ghosts today,"

Danny quickly changed into his ghost form and flew towards Sam's house. Danny flew in through Sam's window and saw Dani and Sam still seemingly fast asleep. Figuring now would be a good time for a trick, Danny sneaked up to Sam's bed, pulled back the bedsheets, and yelled "Hey kids, wanna see a dead body?!", only to discover a fluffed pillow.

"Trying to sneak up on me?" Sam asked, appearing behind Danny. She had her broken arm in a sling, and like Danny had her ribs taped up. "Have you forgotten I've got your same ghost sense ability too?"

"That reminds me, where's Dani?" Asked Danny before Dani popped up behind him.

"Right here!" Dani yelled into Danny's ear, spooking him. She had sustained the least serious injuries, only suffering from a mild concussion.

"So how are you girls feeling?" Danny asked.

"We're feeling fine," Sam told him. "How about you?"

"Could be better," Danny admitted. "Mom got one look at me after my fight with Vlad and banned us from fighting ghosts until we're fully healed,"

"What do you mean "us"?" Sam asked.

"Yeah, mom told me to tell you that all three of us aren't allowed to fight ghosts until we're and I quote, "A hundred and ten percent at full health,"," Danny told them.

"So what are we supposed to do if ghosts attack Amity Park?" Sam asked.

"I don't think we'll have to worry about too many ghost attacks," Danny said. "Ghost activity has been declining recently and unless any surviving members of Vlad's rebellion try a stupid invasion we shouldn't have anything to worry about,"

"But today marks the 50th anniversary of the Amity Park Butcher's death," Dani pointed out. "What if he comes back from the dead to get revenge,"

"Oh come on, that's just a silly legend," Danny said. "If the ghost of a serial killer was haunting Amity Park, I'm pretty sure I would've encountered and captured him a few times by now,"

"But this is the most haunted city in America, anything is possible" Dani replied.

"True, but I wouldn't get my hopes up about it," Danny said. "So, since we can't fight any ghosts, wanna go see what Tucker's up to?"

"Sure, why not?" Sam replied.

The Mayor appeared to be quite busy when Danny, Sam, and Dani arrived at City Hall. Currently he was on the phone with the police commissioner.

"I want you to do a double check just to be sure," Tucker told the commissioner. "You never know who could be sick enough to try bombing the church or possibly attack someone in some sort of twisted homage to the killer,"

"Sure thing, Mayor; I'll make sure to have my men thoroughly go over the area and be on the lookout for suspicious persons and/ or activity," The commissioner assured him.

"Thank you, you stay safe out there," Tucker told the commissioner before hanging up and greeting his friends. "What's up guys?"

"Nothing much, is right now a good time because we could leave and come back later," Sam offered, noticing how stressed Tucker appeared to be.

"Oh, it's no trouble at all," Tucker said. "It's just that with the prayer vigil being held tonight and Amity Park's reputation of harboring ghosts, people are really scared about the Butcher coming back from the dead. So I'm taking extra precautions to make sure nothing goes awry tonight,"

Tucker then noticed the trio's injuries and asked "So I take it the final confrontation with Vlad got out of hand?"

"You have no idea," Danny said. "And to top it off, Vlad ended up getting away in the end… again, and mom banned us from fighting ghosts until we're completely healed"

"Man, that sucks," Tucker said before he received another phone call. Tucker turned away from his friends and answered the phone. "Hello, this is Mayor Foley's office, how may I help you?"

The person on the other end spoke quietly and Tucker replied "As a matter of fact they're here right now. I'm sure I could ask them to attend, they aren't too busy today,"

Tucker put his hand over the receiver and asked the halfa trio "The church priest is wondering if the three of you could come to the vigil tonight. Even though there'll be plenty of security, people are still worried about the possibility of a ghost attack."

"We don't have anything else to do," Danny said.

"They said they'll be there," Tucker told the priest. "You don't have anything to worry about,"

Tucker turned to his friends and thanked them for agreeing to attend the vigil and told them that he'd be attending as well. Later that evening, the four headed to the church for the service. One of the other attendees was one of the survivors of the Butcher who told her story of the terrifying ordeal. During the service, Danny made sure to keep an eye out for any suspicious activity. Fortunately the vigil went on without any trouble. Following the service, the four friends parted ways and headed home. Just when Danny stopped worrying about the possibility of a ghost attack, his ghost sense went off.

"Oh no, not now," Danny sighed, grabbing his thermos so he could avoid a fight. Then he heard a familiar voice yell "Beware!". "Oh no"

Much to Danny's displeasure, the annoying pest known as the Box Ghost was floating before him.

"Box Ghost, for what do I owe the unpleasant surprise?" Danny asked.

"I have come to fight you, Phantom!" Box Ghost declared. "I'm tired of nobody taking me as a threat so I thought I'd prove myself a threat by beating you"

"Listen, Boxy, today's really not a good day for me," Danny informed him. "I just fought Vlad yesterday and my mom's banned me from fighting ghosts right now so can you and your delusions of grandeur put this off until another time?"

"Nice try, Ghost Boy, you're trying to get out of fighting me by taking an injury," Box Ghost said. "Well it's not going to work!"

Box Ghost charged at Danny, intent to attack him. Danny raised the thermos to capture him, but Box Ghost had become a little bit more savvy since their last fight and quickly blasted said thermos out of Danny's hand. Danny moved out of the way and let Box Ghost fly face first into a billboard.

"Well, technically it isn't a fight if he can't land a single hit on me" Danny thought as he administered a electric shock to Box Ghost's head. "And besides, what mom doesn't know won't hurt her,"

Box Ghost fell out of the sky as Danny went to retrieve his thermos. When he found it, he turned around but Box Ghost was nowhere to be found. Not too concerned, Danny headed home.

Box Ghost meanwhile had slipped into the shadows. He began chuckling to himself. Gradually his laughter grew louder and louder before soon Box Ghost's maniacal laughter echoed throughout Amity Park, sending a shiver down the spines of those who heard it.

**In The Next Chapter: **

_**"What are you talking about?" Danny asked, dreading where this conversation was going. **_

_**"Fifty years ago yesterday, I was put down like a rabid dog," Box Ghost said. "And during the 50 years following that day, the only thing I could remember about myself was some fixation with boxes. Thanks to you, however, I now have my memory back!" **_

_**"Wait, so you're the Amity Park Butcher?" Danny asked skeptically, having a hard time believing this goof was capable of committing murder. **_

_**"Yes, how many more ways do I have to spell it out for you?" Asked an irritated Box Ghost. **_

_**"So if you're the Butcher, why did it take you so long to remember that detail?" Danny asked. **_

_**"Well my guess is that when I was executed in the electric chair, the electricity fried my brain and made me go insane, acting as some sort of lobotomy" Box Ghost explained. "When you administered a shock to directly to my head yesterday, it must've undid the effects of my execution and as a result, the Butcher is back and ready to pick up where he left off!" **_

**Hey there guys! I planned on updating earlier but I had my first speech yesterday and I couldn't focus on anything else. My apologies for the delay. **

**Alright, I know this miniarc sounds stupid, but let me explain why I wrote it. One, I wrote this miniarc as a parody of when certain adaptations take a harmless, joke character villain from a series, and needlessly gives them a darker backstory and makes them a bigger threat in a cheap attempt at making something darker, edgier, and grittier. Basically, this arc is a parody of the "Darker and Edgier" trope. Why Box Ghost? Because he's the biggest joke in the whole show and partly because of his more badass alternate timeline counterpart from The Ultimate Enemy proved he could be a threat. Two, it's October, Halloween month, a time when people dress up as serial killers and mass murderers. Rest assured, everything will be back to normal following this arc and we can get back to the main story. Have a nice day and peace out.**


	17. Mind of a Maniac

**God Save The Queen Chapter 16: Mind of a Maniac**

Finally, after so many years, Box Ghost remembered his identity. Memories were playing out in his mind. Memories of his life as a human. From his birth down to his agonizing demise, and most importantly, his name, it was all so clear. Box Ghost flew around in the dead of night, exploring his old hunting grounds. He'd seen how the town had changed since his death, but now that he had his memories back, he wanted to see just how much it had changed. Box Ghost landed and walked past an electronics store, looking at the TV screens in the window.

"Hello, welcome to Amity Park at 11, tonight's main story; dozens gather to pay their respects to the victims of Maurice Allan aka the Amity Park Butcher, including the Phantom family. As we said this morning, today marks the 50th anniversary of execution of the Butcher. A few local residents were fearful at the thought of the Butcher's ghost riding from the dead to get his revenge."

Box Ghost turned away and laughed to himself. "So today's the anniversary of my execution and these fools still live in fear of me? Heh, I think I'll bring them the sequel they've all been waiting for!"

Box Ghost saw a young man walking by and quickly overshadowed him. The man was 6'0 tall and wore a brown trenchcoat, leather shoes, blue jeans, and a grey T-shirt, making it easier for Box Ghost to blend in with the shadows.

"This poor sap should make a suitable vessel," Maurice thought as he flexed the muscles of his new puppet. "Now, I say it's time I start making up for lost time,"

_Another frustrating day at work. Packing and unpacking boxes for ungrateful pricks. The repetition was starting to drive him insane. The work was back breaking enough, but couple that with the disrespect he received from customers, it was a wonder Maurice hadn't snapped years ago. Still, Maurice kept calm and focused on his job. He had no other choice; times were tough for almost everyone and Maurice could ill afford to lose this job. Today, he was helping a rich couple move into their new mansion. He and his partner Louis worked for hours, unloading heavy box after heavy box. Finally, they had finished their job and it was time to collect their pay. Maurice approached the wife and asked for the money owed to them. The woman handed them the cash but much to Maurice's disappointment, it was only $900. They had worked for 12 hours and were still owed another $300. It didn't seem like much, but that $300 could be the difference between Maurice sleeping in a bed or sleeping on the streets; so Maurice confronted the woman. _

_"Excuse me, ma'am; you only paid us $900," Maurice said. _

_"Yeah, so?" The woman replied, not even paying Maurice the slightest bit of attention. _

_"So? So you still owe us another $300 for the work we did," Maurice said, trying not to lose his temper. _

_"I paid you what I felt like you earned," The woman said. "If you feel your work is worth more, that's not my problem,"_

_"Hey, Maurice, just forget about the $300, man," Louis said, trying to defuse the situation. "You can just take the $300 out of my pay"_

_"No, I'm tired of people stiffing us on our pay because they think they can get away with it," Maurice said before tossing Louis the keys to the truck. "Head back to the office, Lou. Tell the boss I'll be there in a few minutes after a sort out this situation,"_

_"Are you sure, you know the boss won't be too happy if you're late checking back in," Louis reminded him._

_"I'll worry about that, right now you just get back to the office," Maurice said before Louis reluctantly took his advice and left. Maurice then turned his attention to the woman. "Listen ma'am, I work very hard and I don't like being swindled out money owed to me," _

_"That's very interesting, but I really don't care," The woman replied. "Now get off our property before I call the police,"_

_Maurice snapped, pulled out a box cutter and held it to the woman's throat. The woman tried to scream but Maurice placed his hand over her mouth and press the box cutter against her neck. _

_"Don't make one noise," Maurice barked before telling the woman "Go get the keys to the car, we're going for a ride!"_

_Maurice made sure to follow the woman to make sure she didn't try to alert the police. When she grabbed the keys to the car, Maurice knocked her unconscious, tied her up, gagged her, and stuffed her in the backseat of her car. He grabbed one of the boxes they had left over and took it with him, having a feeling he was going to need it. Maurice drove to a remote wooded area before popping the trunk. The woman looked at him with abject fear in her eyes. Maurice removed the tag and the woman immediately screamed before Maurice kicked her in the face. _

_"You'll get to scream in a minute," Maurice said, pulling out the box cutter once again._

_"Listen, if this is about the money, I'm sorry. I'll pay you the $300," The woman tearfully pleaded. "Please, I'll do anything, just please let me go,"_

_"It's too late for apologies," Maurice said. "Do you have any idea what it's like to have to wake up so early that even God hasn't woken up yet? Then you drive to a crappy job to work 12 or more hour shifts lifting and carrying heavy boxes. Finally, you get off work and head home, but you're too tired and sore from back breaking labor and working on your feet all day, that you can't even enjoy yourself. You can't even kick back and watch the ball game on TV because you have to get up early the next day and start all over again. And to top it all off, sometimes you don't get paid the money you're promised. It's bad enough that some people can't afford to pay you, but then there's people like you who just laugh in our face."_

_"Please, let me go; I'm sorry," the woman continued to beg. "I'll do anything you want, I won't tell the police, just don't kill me,"_

_"Save your begging," Maurice told her, finished with his little rant. "You could've avoided this whole situation but instead you swindled me and my buddy just because you felt you could"_

_Maurice then placed the blade of the box cutter just below the elbow of the woman's arm and began slowly dragging the blade down her arm. The woman let out a bloodcurdling scream as blood seeped from the cut. Maurice made another crude cut on the woman's other arm. He made another cut, this time on the back of her leg before slicing the woman's Achilles heel. The woman screamed and cried out for help but no one was around to hear her. Maurice sliced the woman's other Achilles heel to make sure she couldn't run. For the first time in a long time, Maurice felt good. Maurice smiled as he continued slashing the woman's body. The woman continued tearfully begging for her life, but Maurice ignored her. Finally, Maurice crudely slashed the woman's throat and watched as the life faded from her eyes. After the woman had died, Maurice used the box cutter to cut off her head. Maurice placed the woman's head in the box he had brought with him and drove back to the mansion. Maurice unlocked the door and placed the bloody box alongside the other boxes he had helped unload. Why not leave the husband a surprise for when he gets home he thought. Maurice took the $300 owed to him before heading back to the office. _

############################################

Sam was enjoying a peaceful slumber when Dani woke her up, telling her to turn on the TV.

"Good morning, Amity Park, our top story this morning: A man's body was found in a box outside the Amity Park police department at around 3 am. The man had several stab wounds and a cut throat."

"Yeah, what's the big deal?" Sam asked.

"Keep listening," Dani told her.

"The murder bears great similarity to the murders committed by Amity Park serial killer Maurice Allan, whose death was celebrated yesterday. Police right now are classifying the murder as a copycat killing. Currently there are no suspects in the murder. We'll keep you updated as more e get more details."

"I still don't see what the big deal is," Sam said.

"The urban legends were right," Dani replied. "The Amity Park Butcher has come back from the dead to get his revenge!"

"Don't be silly," Sam said. "It's probably just some idiot who has a fascination with serial killers,"

"Probably, but I still have a bad feeling about this," Dani said.

Little did the two girls know that the Butcher was just outside their window watching them, albeit through his unwilling host. The sinister serial killer had spent the night constructing a trap for Danny.

"You're right to worry," Maurice thought to himself. "I'll make Danny Phantom pay for repeatedly making a fool out of me,"

Maurice then freed his host from possession for a few minutes. Predictably, the first thing the poor man did was cry for help. When Dani and Sam came to the man's aid, Box Ghost overshadowed him once again.

"Are you alright?" Dani asked, helping the man to his feet.

"I'm fine, could you two help me to my feet?" The overshadowed man asked.

Dani and Sam each grabbed on arm and hoisted the man to his feet. Box Ghost took advantage of the moment and gave the girls a shock that knocked them unconscious.

"Now that phase one is complete, I can move on to the next part of the plan," Box Ghost said as he looked down at the unconscious girls.

Later that day.

Danny hadn't heard from the girls all day. He wondered what was going on and headed over to Sam's house. Much to his surprise, Sam and Dani were nowhere to be seen. Now he knew something was wrong. And then, much to his annoyance, Box Ghost appeared, again.

"Hello, your highness, fancy seeing you here?" Box Ghost said. "

"You really couldn't have chosen a worse time," Danny sighed, grabbing his forehead. "Listen, could this wait until later?"

"What's wrong?" Box Ghost asked mockingly before smirking maliciously. "Looking for your family?"

Danny immediately picked up on Box Ghost's change in tone and grabbed him by his collar. Something told him the Box freak had something to do with the disappearance of Dani and Sam.

"Where are they?" Danny yelled, smashing Box Ghost against the wall.

"Calm down, I just want to play a little game," Box Ghost said, smiling.

"I'm not in the mood for any games!" Danny snarled, his eyes glowing greener than usual.

"Now, now, Danny; getting angry isn't going to help you find your wife and daughter," Box Ghost mocked him. "I mean, I'm willing to give them a fair chance at living, which is more than I can say for my other victims,"

"What are you talking about?" Danny asked, dreading where this conversation was going.

"Fifty years ago yesterday, I was put down like a rabid dog," Box Ghost said. "And during the 50 years following that day, the only thing I could remember about myself was some fixation with boxes. Thanks to you, however, I now have my memory back!"

"Wait, so you're the Amity Park Butcher?" Danny asked skeptically, having a hard time believing this goof was capable of committing murder.

"Yes, how many more ways do I have to spell it out for you?" Asked an irritated Box Ghost.

"So if you're the Butcher, why did it take you so long to remember that detail?" Danny asked.

"Well my guess is that when I was executed in the electric chair, the electricity fried my brain and made me go insane, acting as some sort of lobotomy" Box Ghost explained. "When you administered a shock to directly to my head yesterday, it must've undid the effects of my execution and as a result, the Butcher is back and ready to pick up where he left off!"

"But, that makes no sense," Danny said.

"It doesn't have to," Box Ghost retorted. "All that matters is I'm back and I'm going to make you pay for all those times you humiliated me!"

"Whatever, where are Sam and Dani?" Danny asked, growing impatient.

"They're buried somewhere in Amity Park," Box Ghost answered. "The only question is where? You'd hurry up and find them because I say they've only got two hours of oxygen left before they suffocate,"

"They're half ghost, it's not like they can't just unbury themselves," Danny pointed out.

"Don't you think I realized that," Box Ghost replied. "They were easy enough to incapacitate with their injuries, so I buried them in a box containing blood blossoms, neutralizing their powers if not slowly killing them. So I repeat: you'd better hurry if you want to find them,"

Box Ghost laughed as he turned to disappear, but Danny grabbed him by his wrist.

"You're going to tell me where they are or I'm going to," Danny threatened.

"You'll what?" Box Ghost called Danny's bluff. Danny responded by punching Box Ghost in the face. Box Ghost, in turn, landed a kick to Danny's injured ribs. Danny let go and clutched his ribs, but fired an ecto blast at Box Ghost who dodged.

"Here's a hint, genius" Box Ghost said. "Where do you usually bury a stiff?"

"But Amity Park has three cemeteries, how am I supposed to find the right one?" Danny asked.

"That's not my problem," Box Ghost replied as he disappeared. "All I know is you better hurry. I'll be keeping myself busy doing other things while you look around."

As soon as he disappeared, Danny rushed over to City Hall. Tucker surely could give him a hand in finding Dani and Sam.

**In The Next Chapter:**

_**With that, Box Ghost took Danny by surprise with a punch to the jaw. Danny recoiled from the blow and retaliated with a punch of his own. His injuries however slowed him down more than he realized and Box Ghost easily sidestepped and countered with a kick just beneath the chin. Danny's head snapped back and he tried blasting Box Ghost, but Box Ghost dodged and uppercut Danny. Danny could tell right away that this Box Ghost had changed not only in personality but in combat as well. Deciding to take the battle seriously, Danny ignored his wounds and with astounding speed, hurled himself shoulder first into Box Ghost, surprising the latter and hurtling him a few meters before he managed to stop himself. **_

**And that wraps up part 2 of this breather saga.**

**Peter: I noticed you've given The Butcher a Freudian Excuse.**

**Yes, because apparently every serial killing villain in fiction has some sort of "tragic backstory" to the point it's an unwritten rule that every serial killer has to have something traumatic happen that leads to their psychosis. Jason Vorhees was bullied and drowned as a child while at summer camp, Freddy Krueger had an abusive father, The Joker lost his wife and unborn child to a freak accident and then fell in a vat of chemicals, Misa Amane had her parents murdered before her eyes in a robbery, Lucy from Elfin Lied was constantly harassed by other kids and even had her dog killed just because of her horns, etc.**

**Eddie: Hell, if you think about, even I/You/Peter have a Freudian Excuse.**

**What did I tell you about even thinking about our past? If I wanted to talk about my problems, I'd phone in an appointment with my psychiatrist. Getting back on point, half the time a villain is given a "tragic backstory", it's poorly executed and is a rather flimsy excuse for why they do the things they do. So I gave Box Ghost the flimsiest excuse I could give him. **

**It's been a while since I've added a disclaimer to the end of the chapter but just to make sure everyone knows and understands: The preceding was a non profit fan fiction story. Danny Phantom is owned by Butch Hartman and Nickelodeon, please support the official release.**


	18. The Game

**God Save The Queen Chapter 17: The Game**

Danny rushed to City Hall as fast as he could. Not even taking the time to knock, be phased through into Tucker's office, startling the mayor.

"Dude, what's wrong?! Is Vlad back already?" Tucker asked.

"No, Box Ghost is back!" Danny told him.

"Yeah, so? You've managed to deal with him before," Tucker said.

"You don't understand, the Box Ghost is the Amity Park Butcher," Danny tried explaining.

"What?" Asked a confused Tucker. "Are you feeling alright? You're telling me that Box Ghost is a former serial killer?"

"It's true," Danny insisted. "I couldn't believe him at first either and to some extent I still don't, but I do know he's managed to kidnap Sam and Dani and bury them alive in one of Amity Park's cemetery,"

"How did he manage to do that?" Tucker asked, quickly grabbing onto Danny as the be phased through the wall and took flight.

"He most likely took advantage of them being injured," Danny answered. "I just know we have to hurry. I'll explain everything"

Meanwhile, in Amity Park cemetery, Box Ghost was waiting inside his unwitting host, seeing if Danny would be able to find him in time. He stood underneath a tree over a recently dug hole. Starting to become bored, he began reminiscing on his crimes once again.

_Things had escalated quickly for Maurice. Nobody even suspected him of being involved in the rich lady's grisly murder. The murder unleashed something within Maurice, though. A feeling of joy, a way he could finally escape his vices. Sure, he felt guilty and remorseful at first, but over time the thrill from the kill made him want more. The first murder was purely to take out his anger on someone. Two weeks following that, Maurice was involved in argument with a foreman over construction taking place near his house. The foolish construction worker found himself beaten to death with his own shovel and then left in a box at the very construction site he was working at. From there, committing murder just became easier for Maurice. His third unfortunate victim happened to be his landlord. Never once was Maurice even suspected in these murders. Pretty soon, Maurice didn't even need a reason to kill and what began as an outlet for anger became an addiction that started. Soon, the whole town was in fear of "The Butcher"._

_The thrill he got from committing these deeds was what Maurice loved the most. He loved seeing the fear in his victims' eyes as they tearfully pleaded for their lives. Even big burly men couldn't help but beg to be spared. Maurice made sure he wasn't (too) sloppy when killing people however. He always attacked at night, taking unsuspecting victims by surprise and bringing them to the remote region in the woods before killing them. The only thing he didn't like was being unable to take credit for his art form. Alas, he had to remain anonymous and stay hidden. At least he had the pleasure of knowing he'd live on in infamy like Jack the Ripper._

_Today, Maurice had his eye on his next victim, a young boy riding around on his bicycle. Children had never been his favorite targets. They were so small and fragile and oftentimes barely put up a fight. Because they were so delicate, the deed usually lasted less than a couple of minutes. Still, killing the boy would satisfy the raging beast that dwelled within him. With a malicious grin, the monster called out to the child._

_"Hey kid, do you think you could help me with something?" He asked the child, trying his best to sound sincere and in need of assistance._

_"Uh, sure," the boy said, walking over to assist his neighbor even though he was suspicious of the man's intent. "What do you need help with?"_

_Maurice lead the boy inside his house and slammed the door behind him. The child jumped when he heard Maurice lock the door behind him. Maurice started laughing and the child realized he had made a mistake._

_"You kids are so stupid, didn't your mother ever teach you not to talk to strangers?" Maurice laughed. The boy tried to run to the door, but Maurice stood in his way. "Where do you think you're going kid, we're going to have a little fun!"_

_"You better let me go or-" The kid said, trying to hide any signs of fear._

_"Or what?" Maurice laughed, the fear in his voice was all too easy to hear._

_"HELP! SOMEONE, PLEASE HELP!" The kid screamed before Maurice punched him in the mouth._

_"Please be quiet, you don't want to disturb the other neighbors, do we?" Maurice mocked the boy._

_Maurice grabbed at the boy, who retaliated by kicking him in the shin. The kick had some power behind it as Maurice toppled face first into the floor. The boy took advantage of this by stomping on his face. The boy made a dash for the door, but Maurice extended his leg and tripped the boy up. He grabbed the kid by his ankle, but the kid kicked him in the face with his other leg. Wiping blood away from his nose, Maurice smiled as that feeling of excitement overwhelmed him. It was as if he were a hunter hunting down a cornered prey and the fight only encouraged him more._

_The boy made another run for the door and had his fingertips on the knob when Maurice grabbed by his waist and tossed him across the room. The boy collided hard with the wall and dropped to the floor. Knowing any hesitation would mean the difference between life and death, the boy got back to his feet immediately and ran. He couldn't go upstairs, that would leave him cornered so he ran into the kitchen. Maurice quickly followed him, a Cheshire Cat grin on his face. Spotting a kitchen knife on the table, the kid quickly grabbed it and pointed it at Maurice._

_"You shouldn't play with knives, young man," Maurice taunted him. "Especially when you don't know how to use them. Now put the knife down before you hurt yourself,"_

_Maurice made a grab at the child, who responded but cutting his hand. The kid had quick reflexes and dodged a punch from the killer before slashing him across the face._

_"Yes! This is what I'm talking about!" Maurice shouted as blood trickled down the side of his face, having the time of his life. "No one's ever put up a fight quite you. I like you kid, you've got something special! Too bad I'm going to have to rip it out of you!"_

_"You're crazy!" The kid accused him, wiping tears from his eyes._

_"Maybe so, but at least I'm not dead!" Maurice replied before lunging at the kid._

_The boy took a mad slice at Maurice, but the madman was too quick and was only nicked by the blade. Maurice knocked the boy to the ground and tossed the blade aside. He pinned the boy down, wrapped his hands around his throat and began squeezing. The boy coughed and gasped, but that still didn't stop him from putting up a fight in his last moments. The boy took swipes at Maurice, but his punches were slow and sluggish. Slowly, but surely the life faded from the young boy and he quit struggling. Maurice chuckled as he removed his hands from the boy's neck._

_"No, no, this will not do," Maurice thought to himself. "This was far too clean of a kill. The people of this city deserve something bloodier, more creative than this."_

_Maurice spotted the kitchen knife and picked it up. Maurice made sure to move the child's body to the bathroom so he could create his art in peace. He stared at the boy's lifeless body momentarily before he made a crude gash down the boy's torso. He reached into the kid's chest cavity and pulled out a few of his internal organs. He grabbed a box and placed the bloody organs inside. Maurice crudely stitched up the boy's corpse before taping up the box, intending to send the police the remnants of yet another victim._

Box Ghost's reminiscing was interrupted when he heard Danny's voice approaching. From the sound of things, he had company. Box Ghost quickly went invisible to avoid the detection as he listened closely.

"This is the last cemetery in town," Danny said. "We've looked all over and haven't found a trace of the girls anywhere unless Boxy buried them in another town or something,"

"I'm still trying to wrap my head around this whole Box Ghost serial killer thing," Tucker said.

"Hold on a minute," Danny said as his ghost sense went off. "He's here, I can sense him."

"Damn, I forgot about that blasted ability of his," The Butcher thought.

"There's no use in hiding, Box Freak, Butcher, or whatever you want to call yourself!" Danny yelled out, trying to coax Box Ghost out of hiding. "I know you're here!"

"Well it's nice to know you managed to find the place," Box Ghost laughed as he made himself and his host visible. "How do you like my new body? It's not the most physically fit specimen, but he works just fine,"

Box Ghost briefly released his poor host from his control.

"Please, Mr. Phantom, you have to help me," The man pleaded. "I don't want to kill people. The things I've been forced to do, please?! I don't want to hurt anyone else,"

"That's quite enough from you," Box Ghost said, overshadowing the man once again. "As for you Danny, you're one step closer to winning our little game. Now just beat me in a fight and you'll be reunited with your family,"

"Are you serious?" Danny asked.

"Do I look like I'm joking?" Box Ghost asked, cocking his head to the side.

"I'm not fighting you while you're overshadowing someone else," Danny said, reluctant to possibly hurt an innocent bystander.

"If you insist," Box Ghost said, leaving the man's body. The man crumpled to the ground unconscious. "I wouldn't want this pathetic meat bag to slow me down anyway"

With that, Box Ghost took Danny by surprise with a punch to the jaw. Danny recoiled from the blow and retaliated with a punch of his own. His injuries however slowed him down more than he realized and Box Ghost easily sidestepped and countered with a kick just beneath the chin. Danny's head snapped back and he tried blasting Box Ghost, but Box Ghost dodged and uppercut Danny. Danny could tell right away that this Box Ghost had changed not only in personality but in combat as well. Deciding to take the battle seriously, Danny ignored his wounds and with astounding speed, hurled himself shoulder first into Box Ghost, surprising the latter and hurtling him a few meters before he managed to stop himself.

With another quick burst of speed, Danny appeared behind Box Ghost and kicked him in the back, and then buried his fist in the back of Box Ghost's head. Box Ghost was savvy however and elbowed Danny in his injured ribs. The move stunned Danny for a couple moments and allowed Box Ghost to head butt him. Danny's vision became fuzzy and the world started to spin around him as he felt blood trickle from his forehead.

With Danny still confused, Box Ghost unleashed a series of blows to his torso. Danny's eyes nearly bulged out of his head but he persevered through the fiery pain and delivered a well placed kick to Box Ghost's crotch. Box Ghost instinctively doubled over in pain and Danny kicked him in the face. Danny then blasted Box Ghost in the gut, which sent him flying a few meters. That same thrill from all those years ago came back to Box Ghost and he began laughing maniacally. Box Ghost lunged at Danny who responded by shooting stalagmites at Box Ghost, one of which pierced Box Ghost's left eye. Box Ghost screamed as green ectoplasm slowly dripped from his eye.

"Okay, now I'm mad!" He screamed as he launched dozens of box shaped ecto energy attacks at Danny, who casually deflected them.

While the two were fighting, Tucker had managed to find the spot where Dani and Sam were buried underground and began digging to free them. He wondered how much deeper he'd have to dig before finally coming upon two boxes. Acting quickly, Tucker pried the lids off the makeshift coffins and freed the girls from their grave.

"Alright, where is that Box Freak?" Sam asked angrily as she rose up from the ground.

"Right there," Tucker said, pointing towards the fight between Danny and Box Ghost.

"Great, I'll be right back!" Sam said before Tucker grabbed her by her good arm.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," Tucker advised.

"Why?" Sam asked.

"Well because in a addition to being one armed, the effects of the blood blossoms probably still haven't completely worn off," Tucker told her and Dani. "And besides, it's the Box Ghost; I doubt Danny can't handle him."

"So what are we supposed to do?" Asked Dani.

"Well you could help get this guy someplace safe," Tucker advised, pointing to the guy Box Ghost had used as a puppet.

Danny dodged a punch from Box Ghost and socked him in the gut. Box Ghost was noticeably starting to grow more and more manic as time went on. He was haphazardly throwing punches, many of them missing by more than a few centimeters. When his fury of fists failed to work, Box Ghost ripped the icicle out of his eye, took Danny by surprise, and stabbed the ghost king in the chest. Danny was briefly paralyzed from shock, but thankfully the icicle didn't puncture any major organs. While Danny was stunned, Box Ghost imprisoned him in a box shaped energy prism.

"Nuh uh uh, I wouldn't do that if I were you. If anyone other than myself touches that box it'll explode, destroying any unfortunate soul imprisoned inside it," Box Ghost advised Danny as he raised his fist to punch through the prism. "Now you have no choice but to watch as the air supply runs out and your precious family suffocate to death. How ironic, the mighty King of Ghosts defeated by a mere peasant,"

"First off, that isn't irony; second, think again," Danny said from inside the prism before pointing down.

"Oh crap, I forgot about the techno geek!" Box Ghost said when he looked down and saw that Tucker had unearthed the girls from their coffins and that his host was nowhere to be seen. "No matter, the girls are still too weak from the blood blossoms to be of any threat to me and with you still trapped in that box, you have no choice but to watch me do this!"

With that said, Box Ghost took off towards Tucker, intending to overshadow him. Unfortunately for him, he ended up getting electrocuted and then knocked aside by a force field. Tucker pulled up his shirt to reveal that he was wearing a specter deflector.

"Why are you wearing a specter deflector?" Dani asked.

"I always wear a specter deflector when hanging out with you guys since you do tend to fight ghosts and I'm the only one who's not a halfa," Tucker said. "Usually I just don't have it turned on to avoid hurting you guys,"

"That's pretty savvy," Sam commented.

"No, this isn't supposed to happen like this!" Box Ghost yelled. "How could this get any worse?"

At just that moment, Danny formed a shield bubble around himself and expanded until it touched the walls of the box, causing it to explode but leaving Danny completely unscathed. Danny quickly floated down in front of Box Ghost.

"You're gonna kick my butt, aren't you?" Box Ghost asked.

"Whatever gave you that idea?" Danny replied, cracking his knuckles.

Box Ghost barely managed to react in time to dodge a vicious kick to the head from Danny. Danny moved quickly and caught Box Ghost by surprise by elbowing him in the back of the head. Box Ghost poked Danny in the eye with his thumb and blasted him in the face at point blank range. Danny it appeared, was knocked out from the blast, but Box Ghost wasn't going to take any chances. Creating huge crates out of ecto energy, Box Ghost brought them crashing down on top of Danny and seemingly crushing him. Box Ghost wasted no time in gloating.

"Years of humiliation! Years of being made a laughing stock, being the Ghost Zone's whipping boy! Well guess what?! I just defeated the great Danny Phantom!" Box Ghost yelled as he grabbed Danny by his collar. "Who's laughing now, huh Phantom?! Who's laughing now?!"

Danny muttered something unintelligible.

"What's that? I can't hear you!" Box Ghost screamed, reveling in his victory.

"Ha…HA!" Danny said before catching Box Ghost off guard, slapping his hand against his head and giving the maniac another shock.

"Not again!" Box Ghost said as his memories started fading a second time. He felt as if his soul was being ripped from him. He couldn't go back to being a harmless twit incapable of scaring of a infant. He tried pulling away, but Danny held tight until finally there was nothing and for the second time, the Butcher had been executed. Danny finally stopped when Box Ghost slipped into unconsciousness. Danny quickly pulled out his thermos and sucked Box Ghost inside before tending to Sam and Dani.

"Are you two okay?" He asked.

"We're fine," Sam said. "But I was not ready for today,"

"I don't think any of us were," Danny said.

"So why don't we just forget this all ever happened and never speak of this again?" Dani proposed.

"Agreed," Danny, Sam, and Tucker said simultaneously.

With the Butcher defeated once again and Box Ghost seemingly back to his normal self, the gang could relax. After all, with all their enemies defeated, there was nothing to worry about, right?

**In The Next Chapter:**

_**"Oh hey Danny, fancy meeting you here," Paulina greeted, smiling at Danny.**_

_**"Hey Paulina, you wouldn't have seen Sam by any chance, have you?" Danny asked.**_

_**"Forget about Sam," Paulina said, wrapping her hands around Danny. "I wanna talk to you,"**_

_**"No, I won't go out with you," Danny stated bluntly.**_

_**"Danny, I'm hurt," Paulina feigned innocence. "I worked up the courage to finally confess my feelings for you and you turn me away,"**_

_**"Really, you've a crush on me?" Danny asked skeptically.**_

_**"Oh, don't act like you don't feel the same way," Paulina replied. "I know you feel the same way,"**_

_**"Listen, Paulina, I don't know if you've heard but Sam and I are kinda married," Danny pointed out.**_

_**"Come on; what Sam doesn't know won't hurt her," Paulina said, trying to give Danny a quick kiss on the cheek.**_

_**"Sorry, but I'm not going to cheat on Sam," Danny said.**_

_**"Why not?!" Paulina exclaimed. "I'm much better than that loser. I'm prettier than her, I have more money than her, I'm better than her in general,"**_

_**At just that moment, the doors to the auditorium slammed open. Paulina immediately hid behind Danny when she saw Sam's darkened silhouette standing in the doorway. The only thing Paulina could make out were Sam's glowing green eyes, filled with rage.**_

**And that concludes that little storyline. So will our heroes get a chance to rest in peace? Of course not, we'd have no story if they did. Who's going to be the next Big Bad? Tune in next time to find out! Until then, this has been Timothy D, peace out and have a nice day!**


	19. Back to School

**God Save The Queen Chapter 18: Future Shock****  
**  
Deep in Clockwork's domain, a silver heavily dented thermos shook and trembled violently. The spirit contained inside it desperately fought, trying to claw it's way out to freedom. He had been trapped in the darkness of the thermos for who knew how long. The spirit knew that if he spent one more minute in this blasted thermos, he'd lose whatever sanity he had left. Finally, after years of struggling, the thermos exploded, releasing the most dangerous ghost ever into the world. The spirit, known as Dark Danny, Dan Phantom or Dan Plasmius let out a triumphant laugh. It didn't take long for Dark Danny to realize he was in Clockwork's realm and he began looking for the Master of Time himself. He didn't have to look far as Clockwork was standing only a few meters away, looking into a time bubble.

"Oh good, you're awake," Clockwork said nonchalantly as he only momentarily looked in Dan's direction.

"Uh, hello, the biggest threat to the world and the Ghost Zone has just escaped and you're making jokes?" Dan asked in confusion. "Aren't you going to try and put me back into that little tin can?"

"Nope. There's work that needs to be done and I can't concern myself with trying to capture you again," Clockwork replied before smirking at the homicidal ghost. "And besides, you have work to do,"

Dan let out another laugh before saying "I've got work to do? Is this one of those stupid things where I have to fight a bunch of ghosts worse than me to earn my redemption type of things? If so, then you can forget it, I don't take orders from anyone!"

"You don't have a choice," Clockwork told him.

"Oh really, and what are you going to do? Use your stupid staff to freeze time?" Dan retorted, before pulling out a time medallion that made him immune to Clockwork's powers.

"Hmm, I see," Clockwork said. "Since you aren't going to cooperate, I guess I have no choice but to imprison you once again"

"Good luck with that," Dan said as he lunged at Clockwork.

Clockwork sidestepped him and clocked Dan in the face with his staff. Dan grunted in annoyance and fired a blast at Clockwork, who easily dodged. Clockwork fired a blast of his own, but Dan took it head on without taking any damage. Dan decided he didn't feel like wasting time with Clockwork, so he took a deep breath and unleashed the Ghostly Wail. Clockwork struggled and tried to fight through the attack, but Dan ultimately prevailed, incapacitating the Master of Time.

"No, I can't let you do any damage to this timeline," Clockwork said as he weakly tried to get to his feet before Dan placed his foot on his chest.

"I'll be taking that," Dan said before reaching down and snatching Clockwork's staff out of his hand, kicking Clockwork in the face. "There's so much potential for what I could do with this,"

Dan then departed from the Clock Tower as fast as he could. Dan fought the urge to destroy anything he came across. Complete destruction could wait until later, right now all he was focused on was revenge. Maybe it was Plasmius' pride that was driving him, but Dan refused to accept that his younger self had defeated him. As Dan made his way through the Ghost Zone, Clockwork's last words lingered in his thoughts.

"This timeline, could that mean there are other timelines? If so, are there alternate versions of me? Is it possible there's even a timeline where I won?" Dan asked himself. "All of those are questions to be answered later. For now, let's focus on revenge,"

As soon as Dan was out of sight, Clockwork got to his feet and dusted himself.

"I love it when a plan comes together," Clockwork said to himself. "Now to just sit back and made sure everything goes according to plan,"

Back in Amity Park, Danny and Sam had spent the last two weeks training to effectively use both the Ring of Rage and the Crown of Fire. But now summer had come to an end and it was time for our protagonists to return to school for their senior year. Danny wondered how many things would be different now that the whole school knew of his secret identity. Most seniors drove their cars to school; Danny and Sam on the other hand had the power of flight, soaring above the skies at incredible speed. The couple's competitive nature got the best of them and they found themselves racing to Casper High. The two arrived to a crowd of students eagerly awaiting their arrival.

"Maybe we should've left a little earlier," Danny noted as a mob of their peers surrounded them.

"Alright, alright! Give the lovebirds some breathing room!" A voice yelled out, shoving most of the students aside.

Danny was surprised to see that the voice came from his former bully, Dash Baxter. Dash was accompanied by his usual group of friends as well as Paulina, who was giving Danny a lustful gaze. Funny how quickly people had a change of heart when they found out you're they're favorite superhero.

"If anyone messes with Fenton or his friends, they'll have to answer to me, got it?" Dash asked the crowd, who nodded. "Good, now give the two some space."

The students dispersed almost immediately, save for a few fa girls who wanted to get a couple of autographs.

"Anything else I can do for you, Fenton, I mean Danny?" Dash asked.

"Uh, no; that'll be good for now," Danny said, not knowing how to feel about his once tormentor now being his self appointed bodyguard.

"See you around, Danny!" Paulina said, blowing a kiss at Danny while she and Dash walked away, making Sam's blood boil.

Tucker stepped out of his limo right after the two left and said "Well, there's something I never thought I'd see,"

"I know, I thought I'd be used to the attention by now," Danny said. "But to see the same people who made my life miserable do a complete 180 just makes it feel like I've stepped into an alternate universe,"

"I don't see why you're complaining," Tucker said. "At least you're not being shoved in lockers anymore"

"Hey, Danny!" A voice cried out. The voice belonged to none other than Valerie Grey, who Danny hadn't heard from since the possessed suit issue with Technus. "We need to talk,"

"Talk? Talk about what?" Danny asked.

"Well for one, I never thanked you for saving me from Technus," Valerie said. "And I need to know why you never told me that you were Danny Phantom while we were dating?"

"You know, it might've had something to do with the fact that you blamed me for your dad losing his job and ruining your life," Danny pointed out. "Not to mention the fact that for a brief period of time, you wanted nothing more than my head on a pike,"

"But I didn't know you were Danny Phantom," Valerie pointed out.

"Yeah, but at one point you were one of the bullies who harassed me so what would stop you from beating the absolute crap out of "the biggest loser in school" who you just found out was your mortal enemy?" Danny asked.

"I- uh, okay, I guess you have a point," Valerie said. "But you were Vlad's archenemy even before he outed himself, why didn't you at least tell me that the man supplying me with me weapons was also half ghost and a total fruit loop?"

"If I did, Vlad would tell my secret identity and knowing him, he'd probably have us both killed for knowing too much," Danny replied. "Speaking of which, what did you do with your power suit after it was destroyed?"

"I rebuilt it," Valerie said.

"Why?" Asked Danny.

"Because, you, Dani, and Sam aren't the only ghost fighters in Amity Park," Valerie said. "If something happens to you three, there won't be anyone left to defend Amity Park,"

"Hmm, fair enough" Danny said.

After a few more minutes of talking, the four split up to head for their respective classes. Little did Danny and Sam know that Paulina had sent two of her friends to spy on them. Paulina wanted the Ghost Boy all to herself and refused to accept that a "geek" like Sam got the superhero while she was stuck with a dumb blonde jock for a boyfriend. It wasn't fair.

Oblivious to their would be spies, the lovebirds headed to class. For Danny, his first class was English while Sam's was Advanced Algebra. With no way of getting into the couple's respective classes, the two spies jotted down some notes before heading to their own classes.

When lunch rolled around, Danny and Sam decided to eat their lunch outside so they wouldn't have to deal with the hordes of students asking for autographs. At times, their classmates could be just as bad as the paparazzi that had plagued them almost the entire summer. They picked a small tree to sit under to eat their lunch, hopefully in peace. Paulina's spies meanwhile, were watching them atop the school roof with a pair of binoculars.

"Is it just me or does it seem too quiet?" Sam asked.

"Crap!" one of the girls whispered, fearing that their cover had been blown.

"I know what you mean," Danny said. "After everything that's happened over these past few months, I keep feeling like a new villain's going to show up for me to fight,"

"Why do you need a new villain to fight when you have me?" Sam asked with a smirk.

"Really, we're going to do this right now? At school?" Danny replied.

"What's wrong, scared I'm going to beat you?" Sam replied.

"Funny, you said those same words this morning when we decided to race this morning," Danny said, his eyes changing from blue to green.

"Don't get too excited, I was just kidding," Sam said. "The last thing we want is to have everyone's eyes on us again,"

"Were they about to fight?" Asked one spy. Her companion shrugged in response.

"I think Paulina might be interested in this little tidbit of information," the other spy said.

"I doubt it, I mean every couple fights every once in a while," her friend said.

"Yeah, but Paulina is probably looking for any little problem in their relationship so she can seduce Danny," the girl replied.

"So, what class do you have next?" Danny asked Sam.

"Actually I don't have a class after lunch," Sam replied. "In fact, I have an entire hour to myself,"

"Wish I could say the same, I have world history after this," Danny said. "A minute away from you is an eternity past,"

"Quit being a drama queen, "Romeo"," Sam said, giving Danny a quick peck on the cheek. "My last class is only 30 minutes, I won't be separated from you for long,"

"So what are you going to do for an hour?" Danny asked.

"I think I'll head to the gym while it's empty to do a little training," Sam told him before the two started to go their separate ways.

"Now there's something I think Paulina would be interested in," One of the girls said.

"So that goth loser is in the gym right now, all by herself?" Paulina asked her two spies.

"Yeah, she has another class in a few minutes and Danny has a break after History class," the second girl told her. "You might want to make your move now,"

"Are you sure you want to do this, Paulina?" Star asked her friend. "I doubt you're going to be successful in breaking up Sam and Danny. Maybe you should just let it go,"

"I'm not going to let it go! What has that goth witch have that I don't?!" Paulina replied. "I'm the prettiest, richest, most popular girl in school! She's weird and creepy. Danny's a superhero, not to mention being way out of her league. I deserve to be his wife, not her!"

"But they're married now," Star pointed out.

"Not for long," Paulina said, smiling seductively as she made her way to the gym.

Paulina saw Sam fighting with shadows, going all out as if she were fighting a real person. Sam formed a ball of ecto energy and hurled it towards the other end of the gym. Sam flew to the other side of the gym faster than the naked eye could see and deflected her own attack. Paulina knew she'd have to wait before she could make her move and hid behind the bleachers. Sam continued her rigorous training, pushing herself to the very limit until she tired herself out and stopped, feeling she had done enough training for right now. Wiping the sweat off her forehead, Sam headed to the locker room to take a shower before heading to her next class. She didn't hear Paulina following behind her. Paulina waited until Sam had started showering before making her move. She pulled out a a cloth and a bottle of chloroform before pouring the chloroform onto the rag.

"Nighty Night, bitch!" Paulina whispered before placing the chloroformed cloth over Sam's nose and mouth.

Sam tried elbowing Paulina in the ribs, but Paulina stepped to the side, narrowly avoiding the attack. The chloroform started taking effect rather quickly as Sam became dizzy. Still, that didn't stop her from trying to attack Paulina. Her attacks were sluggish and slow however, posing no threat to Paulina. After a few minutes, Sam stopped struggling completely and slipped into unconsciousness. Paulina pulled out some rope from her purse and tied Sam's hands and feet together. She then stuffed the unconscious, naked, bound and gagged Sam into one of the lockers before leaving, but not before using Sam's cell phone to text Danny and invite him to meet her in the school auditorium after class.

30 Minutes Later

Danny didn't waste any time heading to the auditorium as soon as he got out of class. He evaded the crowd of fans by going invisible and walking through walls. He didn't see Sam anywhere when he arrived, naturally making him suspicious.

"Sam!" He called out, hoping to gain her attention. He suspected that Sam was hiding in wait, planning to jump out at him and give him a scare. He braced himself for the inevitable jump scare but it never came.

"Oh hey Danny, fancy meeting you here," Paulina greeted, smiling at Danny.

"Hey Paulina, you wouldn't have seen Sam by any chance, have you?" Danny asked.

"Forget about Sam," Paulina said, wrapping her hands around Danny. "I wanna talk to you,"

"No, I won't go out with you," Danny stated bluntly.

"Danny, I'm hurt," Paulina feigned innocence. "I worked up the courage to finally confess my feelings for you and you turn me away,"

"Really, you've a crush on me?" Danny asked skeptically.

"Oh, don't act like you don't feel the same way," Paulina replied. "I know you feel the same way,"

"Listen, Paulina, I don't know if you've heard but Sam and I are kinda married," Danny pointed out.

"Come on; what Sam doesn't know won't hurt her," Paulina said, trying to give Danny a quick kiss on the cheek.

"Sorry, but I'm not going to cheat on Sam," Danny said.

"Why not?!" Paulina exclaimed. "I'm much better than that loser. I'm prettier than her, I have more money than her, I'm better than her in general,"

At just that moment, the doors to the auditorium slammed open. Paulina immediately hid behind Danny when she saw Sam's darkened silhouette standing in the doorway. The only thing Paulina could make out were Sam's glowing green eyes, filled with rage.

"I was never here!" Paulina whispered, cowering behind Danny.

Sam headed straight for Paulina, with obvious murderous intentions. Danny jumped in front of her and tried holding her back.

"Whoa, I know you're upset, but just calm down and don't do anything you're possibly going to regret," Danny advised his wife.

"Let me go! She has this coming!" Sam said, struggling trying to get to Paulina.

"Not until you calm down and explain what happened," Danny said.

"She ambushed me while I was showering, tied me up and stuffed me in a locker so she could try seducing you!" Sam explained.

"She's all yours," Danny said, stepping aside.

"This is a new low even for you!" Sam said to Paulina as she grabbed her by her throat and held her in the air. "I always knew you were a shallow spoiled brat who loved being in the spotlight, but for you to stoop so low is disgusting! You don't care about Danny, you just want to be with him because he's famous!"

"That's not true," Paulina tried to explain.

"Oh, that's right, I forgot; you just want to hurt me so you try to steal Danny from me!" Sam continued. "You try to put down anyone you feel is a threat to you or lure them in with false friendship because deep down you know that without your money or your good looks, you'd be nothing more than a pathetic bitch who nobody cared about!"

Sam dropped Paulina to the ground and walked out of the auditorium with Danny following behind her. Danny was surprised with how much restraint she had shown, having expected Sam to beat the crap out of Paulina.

"I'm surprised you didn't pummel her," Danny told her.

"I had to control my anger because if I didn't, I would've ended up killing her" Sam said, still seething over Paulina's dirty trick.

After school ended, Danny and Sam explained the whole thing to Valerie and Tucker.

"What?! You mean to tell me that Sam didn't beat Paulina until she was a bloody smear on the ground?" Tucker expressed shock.

"Well it's about time someone said something to that witch," Valerie said, not having forgotten about Paulina excluding her from her clique after she had lost almost everything.

"Man, first day back in school and we already have to deal with drama," Tucker said.

"I know, right?" Sam replied. "The worst part of this is that this is probably the most peaceful our life is going to be right now,"

"I know what you mean," Danny agreed. "I keep expecting a new villain to pop up at any moment,"

And then Danny heard a voice that sent shivers down his spine. A voice he hoped he'd never hear again. "Who needs a new villain when you have me?"

**In The Next Chapter:******

_**Dan charged at Danny, catching his past self off guard with a kick aimed at the ribs. Danny managed to raise his forearm in time to block the kick and retaliated with a punch to Dan's gut. Dan didn't show any signs of the punch affecting him in any significant manner and punched Danny in the face. Danny was knocked back a couple meters, but stopped himself in time to intercept another punch from Dan and counter with an uppercut to Dan's chin. This actually seemed to stagger the ultimate enemy and Danny took the opportunity to kick him in the chest, hurtling him into the sky. That only enraged Dan, who growled and fired another blast at Danny. Danny deflected the blast but quickly found out that the blast had been merely a distraction allowing Dan to close the distance between them knee him in the ribs. Danny doubled over but remained alert, dodging several powerful punches from his alternate future counterpart.**__****_

_**"Will you just hold still?!" Dan asked, growing rather agitated.**__****_

_**Dan grew so frustrated that he failed to block a sudden punch from Danny. Dan growled and took another swing at Danny, who disappeared and reappeared behind him. Danny drove his knee into Dan's spine and followed it up with a kick to the back of his head. Danny disappeared once again but this time appeared below Dan, grabbing the murderous ghost by his leg and smashing him into a billboard**_.

**That's right, Dan Phantom is back and he is looking for revenge after being humiliated by his younger self. However, what has he got in mind besides just killing Danny? What exactly is Clockwork's plan? Will Danny be able to defeat his Ultimate Enemy again? All these questions and more will be answered in due time. As always, I've been Timothy D and I wish you all a good day!**


	20. The Ultimate Return

**God Save The Queen Chapter 19: The Ultimate Return**

Danny, Sam, and Tucker turned around to face the source of the voice. All three of them prayed it wasn't who they thought it was. Unfortunately for them, the voice came from none other than Dan Phantom. Danny, knowing how much of a threat Dan posed, immediately transformed into his ghost form to confront his enemy.

"Uh, who's that and why does he look like Danny?" Valerie asked.

"I'll explain it all later, right now all of you just need to get out of here," Danny told them.

"You're not seriously going to fight me alone, are you past self?" Dan asked mockingly. "If I recall correctly, our previous encounter consisted of me wiping the floor with you before you pulled off a fluke victory and imprisoned me in that wretched thermos"

"I'm certainly not going to sit back and let you kill everyone I care about," Danny replied. "What are you even doing here? I prevented your creation, you shouldn't even exist"

"Foolish past self, thanks to your interference I now exist outside of your timeline, meaning I'm free to kill you without any consequences!" Dan roared before noticing the Crown on Danny's head. "Why do you have the Crown of Fire? I thought it was sealed away with Pariah Dark,"

"Oh yeah, I forgot to mention: they made me King of the Ghost Zone" Danny replied in a way that resembled gloating.

"They named you King of the Ghosts?" Dan asked in disbelief before he tried to surprise Danny with a sudden kick to the head. "You couldn't even be the king of fools let alone king of ghosts!"

"Seeing as I saved the world and the Ghost Zone multiple times, I'd say I've earned the title," Danny replied, blocking Dan's kick with his forearm.

"Hmpf, I can always kill you later, I'd rather make you watch as I kill your friends right in front of your eyes!" Dan said before turning and taking aim at Sam, Tucker, and Valerie who were retreating.

Time seemed to slow down for Danny as Dan fired a white hot pink energy blast at the three. Danny didn't think he could move fast enough to prevent the attack from hitting its target. Fortunately, Sam transformed into her ghost form and threw up an energy shield at the last minute. The shield barely managed to protect the three from the blast and in fact knocked the three onto their back. Still, the barrier did its job and prevented them from being severely hurt.

"What?! She's a halfa now?!" Dan exclaimed in shock upon seeing Sam's ghost form. "Just how long have I been imprisoned within that damn thing?!" Dan's shock quickly disappeared as a psychotic smirk formed on his face. "No matter, if anything this just makes this much more fun."

Dan charged at Danny, catching his past self off guard with a kick aimed at the ribs. Danny managed to raise his forearm in time to block the kick and retaliated with a punch to Dan's gut. Dan didn't show any signs of the punch affecting him in any significant manner and punched Danny in the face. Danny was knocked back a couple meters, but stopped himself in time to intercept another punch from Dan and counter with an uppercut to Dan's chin. This actually seemed to stagger the ultimate enemy and Danny took the opportunity to kick him in the chest, hurtling him into the sky. That only enraged Dan, who growled and fired another blast at Danny. Danny deflected the blast but quickly found out that the blast had been merely a distraction allowing Dan to close the distance between them knee and him in the ribs. Danny doubled over but remained alert, dodging several powerful punches from his alternate future counterpart.

"Will you just hold still?!" Dan asked, growing rather agitated.

Dan grew so frustrated that he failed to block a sudden punch from Danny. Dan growled and took another swing at Danny, who disappeared and reappeared behind him. Danny drove his knee into Dan's spine and followed it up with a kick to the back of his head. Danny disappeared once again but this time appeared below Dan, grabbing the murderous ghost by his leg and smashing him into a billboard.

"He's gotten much stronger since the last time we've fought," Dan noted as he took a minute to recuperate. "So far, all he's done is showcase his speed but that doesn't mean I should underestimate his other abilities. Guess I should stop toying around with him,"

Dan sensed Danny trying to attack him from behind and simply raised his fist, his younger self running into it. Dan grabbed Danny by his head, flipped him over and then smashed his knee into the boy's kidneys. Dan backhanded Danny hard across the face and then head butted him, opening a cut on Danny's forehead. Dan kicked Danny into the air before flying above him and planting both feet in Danny's gut, sending the halfa crashing back down to earth. Dan grabbed Danny by his head and tossed him face first into a brick wall like he was a dart. Danny bounced off the wall and hit the ground hard.

Danny realized he'd have to continue to utilize his speed advantage if he wished to match Dan in combat. Using a short burst of speed, Danny appeared above Dan's head and before the maniac could react, fired a barrage of icicles at him. Dan deflected most of the icicles with his forearm but still took some damage, including some deep cuts in his arms and chest. Danny then charged up a huge ecto ball and threw it at Dan. Dan chose to defiantly take the attack head on and came out with little more than a couple of burns. By this point, a few citizens had (foolishly) gathered around to catch a glimpse at the epic battle taking place.

"I'll admit, you've gotten much stronger since our first fight," Dan said as he took aim at the helpless civilians. "However, you're still too weak to have any chance of winning,"

Dan fired a blast at the civilians, who could only watch in horror as death came closer and closer. Dan intended for Danny to throw himself in front of the helpless civilians and take the blast in their place. Unfortunately, Sam ended up forming a barrier around the innocents, much stronger than her previous shield, successfully protecting them from any harm. Dan was really going to have to remember Sam's ability in the future to ensure this sort of thing didn't happen again.

"Well, that didn't go as planned," Dan muttered.

"Obviously you inherited your arrogance from Plasmius," Danny said, taking advantage of the temporary distraction by kicking Dan in the chin.

Dan was sent hurtling into the air but corrected himself and shot off several fireballs at Danny, a contrast to Danny's cryokinetic abilities. Danny evaded most of the attacks but one fireball grazed his left arm, burning through his jumpsuit and leaving a black scorch mark on his arm. Danny hissed in pain and grabbed his arm while using his other arm to form two giant hands made out of ice and crush Dan in between them. Danny knew it would only hold off his counterpart temporarily and used that precious small amount of time to try and recuperate.

Sure enough, Dan destroyed the ice with a massive explosion of fire. He did shiver briefly but quickly returned his attention to Danny. He flew at Danny at max speed, but Danny disappeared in a burst of speed. The Supreme Halfa needed a few more minutes to recover so he mostly avoided Dan's onslaught.

"You can't hide forever, Danny!" Dan yelled. "You're only delaying the inevitable!"

Danny stays hidden for a few more minutes before reappearing above Dan once again. Dan turned around and blasted at Danny. Danny dodged the blast and reappeared behind Dan, drop kicking him in the back. Dan grabbed at Danny, who countered with an spinning uppercut. Dan growled and swung his leg, trying to connect with a roundhouse kick to the head, but Danny blocked the kick using his forearm. Danny made a desperate gambit and punched Dan in the groin. Dan groaned from the groin attack and shrank back. Danny took advantage and elbowed Dan in the side of his head.

Danny's offense seemed to actually be giving Dan some trouble, but Dan showed no signs of slowing down. In fact, the more Danny fought, the more aggressive Dan became. It was becoming clear that Dan was getting upset at the fact that he was seemingly unable to put away his past self. Dan refused to consider that his past self was now his equal in power. Besides, it was obvious that Danny was taking far more damage than he was. Still, he needed to end this battle soon so he could get on with his plan.

Danny attempted to go on the offensive by trying punch him. Dan grabbed him by his arm and held him in the air. Dan used Danny as a punching bag, delivering a series of fast brutal punches with his free hand. Danny's eyes almost bulged out of his head as dark purple bruises formed on his body. Danny placed his remaining hand on Dan's chest and blasted him full force. Dan was surprised by the sudden attack and went flying through the air. Dan bounced back and charged at Danny once again, ghostly flames surrounding his fist, and punched Danny in the face. The punch burned Danny's face leaving a dark mark on his cheek.

"You've put up quite a good fight," Dan complimented Danny. "I wonder if our lovely Sam can provide similar challenge."

With lightning fast speed, Dan appeared in front of Sam and kicked her in the head, knocking her to the ground. Sam didn't hesitate to fight back, staggering Dan with a vicious left hand. Sam roundhouse kicked Dan in the head before shooting him with eye beams.

"Hmm, not too bad," Dan said, cracking his neck. "But for your sake, I hope you can do better than that,"

Danny then grabbed Dan from behind by his head, holding his hands over his eyes to blind him. Sam took advantage by using her entire body as a battering ram, flying full force into Dan's chest. Dan was temporarily stunned and Danny and Sam took advantage by punching him in the face simultaneously. Dan quickly recovered however and flattened the duo with a double clothesline. Danny and Sam got back to their feet, but Dan bashed their heads together and blasted them.

"Are we really going to just sit back and watch them get beaten to a pulp?" Valerie asked Tucker.

"What are we going to do? Jump in and get killed?!" Tucker asked. "You don't understand, Dan is the most powerful of all of Danny's enemies,"

"Well we've got to do something otherwise Dan will beat them to death," Valerie said as she suited up.

"That's easy for you to say, you've got battle armor," Tucker argued.

"Take this," Valerie said as she tossed him a small blue capsule with a red button on the side in response. "It's another battle suit I've made, suit up and let's go!"

Tucker wasted little time and pressed the button on the side. A battle outfit identical to Valerie's except for being blue in color surrounded him. Tucker quickly found he had the same weapons and equipment as Valerie right down to the hover board.

"Come on, let's get going!" Valerie said.

Danny and Sam continued double teaming Dan, throwing rapid punches and kicks, all of which Dan either blocked or dodged. Dan was starting to get a little tired but still pressed on. He caught Sam with a brutal kick to the jaw, sending her crashing to the ground and briefly incapacitated Danny with a corkscrew uppercut.

"Leave our friends alone!" Valerie shouted as she blasted Dan with her wristwatch laser.

Dan hissed in pain as the blast hit him in the shoulder. Valerie then lunged at Dan with a katana, but Dan nimbly avoided the blade for the most part.

"Valerie Gray, I must admit that in my timeline you were quite the formidable opponent," Dan told her as he caught the blade of her katana with his hand. "But at this point, you're nowhere near as experienced and skilled enough to prove a threat."

Dan kicked her in the chest but was suddenly blasted in the back by Tucker. Upon seeing Tucker in battle armor, he could only double over in laughter.

"Oh, this is precious," Dan laughed. "The techno geek is actually going to try and fight me?! What are you, the Blue Hunter?! What can you possibly do that could hurt me?! You're no halfa and you're certainly no fighter! You're just an ordinary human!"

Tucker didn't say anything and instead opened fire with the anti ghost pistol. Dan had no choice but to evade the shots since they could still weaken him. Tucker then appeared in front of Dan and kicked him as hard as he could in the jaw. Tucker raised both his fists over his head and then brought them crashing into Dan's head. Dan's head violently jerked to the side and he retaliated by backhanding Tucker across the face, treating him as if he were a joke. Dan then grabbed Tucker by his head and kneed him in the face, nearly shattering the "Blue Hunter's" helmet.

Valerie jumped back into battle, using her hover board as an improvised weapon and driving it into Dan's face. Valerie hit Dan across the face twice with a staff before pulling out a bazooka, aiming it at Dan, and firing.

"OH SHIT!" Dan said before narrowly avoiding the rocket. "How many weapons does that suit contain?"

Pretty soon, Sam and Danny had made their way back into the battle. The four of them surrounded Dan who merely smirked. All four of them made their move at the same time. Dan took out Tucker first with a powerful elbow to the stomach before dispatching Sam with a kicking her in the ribs and then blasting her in the face at point blank range. Valerie was taken out next when Dan burned her with fireballs, leaving only Danny.

Dan decided that it was time to finish things and prepared to use his Ghostly Wail to take out Danny. Danny was smart enough to see this coming and prevented Dan from pulling off the attack by gagging his mouth with ecto goo. Knowing the goo wouldn't keep Dan subdued for long, Danny put all of his strength into a single punch that sent Dan crashing into the ground, creating a crater. Dan was more than prepared to get back up and continue fighting until he remembered his plan.

"What do you say we call this fight a draw and do this some other time?" Dan asked.

"Yeah, like I'm going to fall for that," Danny replied.

"I'm serious, you've clearly gotten much stronger since our first encounter seeing as I've failed to kill you," Dan said as he revealed he had Clockwork's staff in his possession. "And I've got much more important matters to attend to. I can't waste anymore time dealing with you,"

"How'd you get that?!" Danny asked.

"Come on, Danny; do you really think that Clockwork would be a match for me?" Dan replied.

"What are you going to do with Clockwork's staff?" Danny asked.

"When I fought Clockwork upon being released, the old geezer implied that there were multiple timelines, with ours being only one of many," Dan explained. "I intend to explore some of these timelines and become stronger until I'm the most powerful being in the multiverse!"

"Revealing your master plan? Definitely inherited a lot of Vlad's personality traits," Sam said, getting back to her feet.

Dan ignored her and said "I hate to leave you hanging, but I've got other worlds to explore,". Dan then used Clockwork's staff to open up a portal to another timeline.

"Come on guys, we can't let him get away!" Danny said as he followed Dan into the portal with Sam, Tucker, and Valerie close behind.

The four friends managed to follow Dan through the portal just before it closed, taking them to another mysterious world.

**In The Next Chapter:  
**  
_**Dan punched Danny in the face, sending Danny crashing into the side of a building. Danny bounced off the building and was immediately elbowed in the head by Dan. Dan kneed Danny in the stomach and then punched him high into the air. Dan followed after Danny and backhanded Danny across the sky before flying over and viciously driving his knee into Danny's lower back. Dan wrapped his hand around Danny's neck and held him in the air.**_

"You're pathetic," Dan spat. "To think that a weakling such as yourself composes part of me sickens me,"

Danny surprised Dan by shooting a blast in both of his eyes. Dan gasped in pain and released Danny from his chokehold. Danny tried to take advantage of the opening by flying full force into Dan's abdomen. Dan was only momentarily stunned from the attack and grabbed Danny by his waist, hoisting him into the air. Dan delivered a vicious series of strikes right to the boy's torso, causing Danny to cough up a bit of blood. Dan then head butted Danny numerous times, opening up a nasty gash on the boy's head. Danny was barely conscious at this point as Dan used The Ghostly Wail on him.

**The "Future Shock" saga is now underway. Okay, so let's address the elephant in the room: If there are multiple timelines, then why did the Observants order Clockwork to kill Danny Phantom if it would have no effect on the Bad Future? Think of the current timeline as the real timeline, with all the others being created as consequences of Clockwork's "cheating". Dan exists outside of the true timeline and is now free to kill his past self and meddle with time with no ill consequences. If Dan wins, he could end up ruling all of space and time. I know that probably makes no sense but for the sake of the story just go with it.  
Now you may be asking "Where's Dani? What role will she play in this arc?". Well while the rest of Team Phantom are traveling to different timelines and universes, Dani's going to be dealing with some problems of her own. "What problems?" You may ask. Well you're going to have to wait a while before finding out. Anyway, can our heroes stop Dan before he messes up all of space and time? Or will Dan come out on top? Keep tuning in to find out! Happy Thanksgiving to all my American readers. I've been Timothy D and as always, have a good day and peace out!**


	21. Time Is On My Side

**God Save The Queen Chapter 20: Time Is On My Side**

When the portal spat out Danny and his friends, they found themselves in what appeared to be normal Amity Park. Something felt quite off about this version of Amity Park however. They didn't know what it was.

"So where are we?" Tucker asked. "Did we even leave Amity Park?"

"I don't know," Danny replied. "But we need to find Dan before he causes havoc,"

"Who is this Dan Phantom ghost anyway?" Valerie asked.

"He's me from an alternate timeline," Danny explained. "In an alternate timeline, my family and friends were killed in a Nasty Burger explosion and I ended up living with Vlad as a result. Vlad's attempt to literally rip out the pain ended up accidentally separating me from my ghost half, who in return, separate Vlad and his ghost half before attack it. The two halves ended up fusing together with my ghost half being the dominant personality but inheriting Vlad's evil. In order to ensure his survival, Dan went back in time to try and kill my friends and family again, but I managed to defeat him and seal him away,"

"So now he's back for revenge after being sealed away?" Valerie asked.

"I guess," Danny said. "Based on what he said earlier, I'd say his biggest goal right now is to cause as much mayhem and destruction as possible,"

"Whatever his plans are, we need to find him before people get hurt," Sam said.

"The only problem is that we don't even know where to begin looking," Danny said. "And sitting here talking isn't going to help us find him any faster so it might be best if we split up into two teams to look for him. Tucker, you come with me! Sam, Valerie; you two stick together. Of any of us run into any trouble, we can just call the other on our cell phones. Got it?"

"Got it," Sam, Tucker, and Valerie all said at the same time before the two teams split up and went their separate ways.

They hoped that they could find Dan sooner rather than later. A psychopath like Dan could easily wipe out an entire city without breaking a sweat. What really scared them was the fact that they had no idea what Dan had in mind other than kill people and destroy things or if he even had other things in mind.

"So… that was kinda impressive the way you fought Dan back in our timeline," Danny said to Tucker, trying to lighten the mood. "Where'd you learn how to fight like that?"

"I used my experience playing VR fighting games and what I've seen in Kung fu movies to my advantage," Tucker said, taking pride in actually being able to help in a physical fight for once. "And I've also been taking some martial arts lessons."

Dan meanwhile, was aware that his alternate self and his friends were looking for him and tried his best to keep a low profile. He was searching for this timeline's version of his younger self.

If Dan was correct, he had travelled back in time to just after Danny's first encounter with Plasmius. Knowing that his actions here would only create another alternate timeline rather than change history, Dan decided to kill this timeline's Danny Phantom to test his strength before moving on to his primary objective. The psychopath was still trying to make head and tails of how much things had changed since he was imprisoned. Amity Park knew of Danny Phantom's secret identity, Valerie was an ally of Danny despite previously wanting nothing more than to rip the ghost boy apart limb by limb, and Sam now had ghost powers. Dan swore he was going to have to look into that later.

"I need to make absolutely sure that the only reason past self fought me to a stand still is because he's gotten stronger and that I haven't gotten weaker from my time stuck in that thermos," Dan thought. "Now I just need to find this timeline's Danny, but I can't just attack him. That'll lead Danny and his friends right to me. I'll need to lure him into a trap somehow,"

Dan got back on point, trying to come up with a way to throw off the heroes when he came up with an idea. He'd create a duplicate of himself to act as a diversion while he hunted down this timeline's Danny Phantom. His duplicate should be at least tough enough to distract Team Phantom for a decent amount of time.

"Whatever you do, do not let Danny or the others out of your sight," Dan instructed his clone. "Do whatever you have to do to keep them busy until I've completed my goal, got it?"

Dan's duplicate nodded before flying off to find Danny and his friends. Dan knew he'd still have to wait a few minutes for his duplicate to catch the goodie two shoes' attention, but he was content with waiting. After all, he had all the time in the world.

"So should we try to find this timeline's versions of ourselves and fill them in or should we avoid meeting them altogether?" Tucker asked, trying to get used to using the hover board of his new ghost hunting suit.

"Why would we avoid meeting our alternate selves?" Danny asked.

"Well you know, Back to the Future, two selves can never meet otherwise it'll tear a hole in the fabric of space and time itself," Tucker joked.

"Oh come on, Tuck; that's just a movie and a pretty dated one at that" Danny said, playing along. "Besides, this isn't really time travel, it's more like traveling to an alternate universe. Multiverse theory is in full effect"

"So if that's the case, why did Clockwork even bother to prevent our deaths as well as the birth of Dan Phantom in our universe since it would have no effect on Dan's future?" Tucker asked in response.

"My guess is that the existence of two Dan Phantoms would be too much for the multiverse to handle since Dan is a person of mass destruction," Danny replied.

"But if we come across another timeline that features Dan that totally ruins your theory," Tucker pointed out.

"Hey, I don't know everything about time travel so save your questions for Clockwork when we get back home," Danny said. "Besides, what are the chances of us running into another version of Dan?"

Just then, the two were interrupted when Dan's duplicate attacked them out of nowhere, hitting Tucker with a double axe handle from behind, knocking him into a tree. Before Danny could react accordingly, Dan uppercutted him. The Dan duplicate then grabbed Tucker and used him as a club to whack Danny in the face. Tucker, after regaining his footing, phoned the girls to let them know what was going on.

"Yeah, we found Dan and we could use a little help here," Tucker said, narrowly avoiding being impaled by a tree limb being tossed at him by Dan.

"Try to hang in there until we get there, we're coming as fast as we can," Valerie advised him.

The Dan duplicate viciously karate chopped Danny in the neck before throwing him into a tree. The duplicate back elbowed Tucker in the side of the head when the techno geek tried attacking him from behind. Dan moved behind Tucker with astounding speed and clubbed him in between the shoulder blades with his forearm. Danny surprised Dan with a dropkick to the back of the head. Dan spun around and caught a punch right in between the eyes from Danny before being tossed into a tree. Dan was about to lunge at the boys before being hit with a blast from Sam. Dan smirked and turned his attention to the Red Huntress and Sammy Specter.

Sam punched Dan in the face and then kicked him in the stomach while Valerie tossed three shurikens into his back. Dan hissed in pain and turned towards Valerie, firing a blast at her. Valerie dodged and the boys took advantage by simultaneously blasting Dan in the back. Dan exploded with rage and tried to punch her.

Meanwhile, Dan had finally found this timeline's Danny Phantom and now it was time to make his presence felt. Timeline B Danny was flying around Amity Park, trying to make it home before his curfew when his ghost sense went off. Danny didn't even have time to react before being blindsided by a vicious kick to the head, sending him crashing into the ground.

"Get up!" Dan barked, not wanting to be kept waiting. "I didn't travel back all the way back in time just to see you take a nap,"

"Time travel huh, does every ghost in this town have some type of shtick?" Danny asked, getting to his feet, unfamiliar with this new menace. Then he noticed Dan's outfit, specifically his logo in the center of Dan's chest. "Is that my logo on your chest?! Are you me?!"

Dan nodded and said "Yes, and no. Yes because I'm you from twenty years in the future. No because you'll have no future when I'm done with you!"

"But you can't kill me," Danny replied. "You'll end up wiping yourself from existence!"

"Thanks to an earlier encounter with you, I exist outside of your timeline," Dan informed him.

"Well if you think I'm just going to lay down and die, you've got another thing coming!" Danny declared, flying at Dan to attack him.

Dan ducked to the side, avoiding Danny's attack. Danny tried swinging his leg back to kick him, but Dan turned intangible, allowing Danny's leg to harmlessly pass through him. Danny tried hitting Dan with an ax handle but Dan moved out the way. Danny started throwing punches at Dan, who easily avoided them while casually looking away, not paying Danny the slightest bit of attention. Danny, getting a little worried, charged up energy before blasting Dan. Dan blocked the attack with merely one hand, coming out with little harm. Now Danny was scared and practically shaking with fear. He'd faced enemies stronger than him before, his encounter with Vlad being the most recent, but even then he managed to get in a few good hits when he was fighting them. This was possibly the first time, Danny was completely outclassed.

"Are you done?" Dan asked with a smirk. "Such a shame, I really expected more from you. Oh well"

Dan punched Danny in the face, sending Danny crashing into the side of a building. Danny bounced off the building and was immediately elbowed in the head by Dan. Dan kneed Danny in the stomach and then punched him high into the air. Dan followed after Danny and backhanded Danny across the sky before flying over and viciously driving his knee into Danny's lower back. Dan wrapped his hand around Danny's neck and held him in the air.

"You're pathetic," Dan spat. "To think that a weakling such as yourself composes part of me sickens me,"

Danny surprised Dan by shooting a blast in both of his eyes. Dan gasped in pain and released Danny from his chokehold. Danny tried to take advantage of the opening by flying full force into Dan's abdomen. Dan was only momentarily stunned from the attack and grabbed Danny by his waist, hoisting him into the air. Dan delivered a vicious series of strikes right to the boy's torso, causing Danny to cough up a bit of blood. Dan then head butted Danny numerous times, opening up a nasty gash on the boy's head. Danny was barely conscious at this point as Dan used The Ghostly Wail on him.

Danny, Sam, Tucker, and Valerie were still fighting Dan's duplicate, unaware that the real Dan Phantom was beating the tar out of this timeline's Danny. They did take note that "Dan" seemed to be weaker, taking far more hits than their previous fight. However, "Dan" retained the real Dan's brutality and any hit that he landed felt like being hit by a train. Just when they were finishing off the clone, they heard Danny's ultimate attack echo in the sky.

"Hold on a minute. If we're fighting Dan and neither he or Danny are using the Ghostly Wail than where is that coming-" Tucker asked before all four of them realized Dan's trick.

"This is just a duplicate!" Danny declared. "While we've been fighting him, Dan's been doing who knows what! Come on, we have to get over there and quickly!"

Danny turned to fly towards the source of the Ghostly Wail, but the Dan duplicate grabbed him by his leg. Danny sighed before destroying it with a large blast. After taking care of him, the gang rushed to the scene, hoping they weren't too late.

The Ghostly Wail left Danny near death, reverted to his human state and lying in a puddle of his own blood. A few people had called police about the fight, but Dan quickly killed the officers with a simple blast before killing a couple civilians just for kicks. Dan floated over to Danny and grabbed him by his shirt collar. He chuckled before he heard Danny's mom yell "Let go of my baby!"

Dan looked up and saw the Fenton RV speeding towards him. Dan's chilling slasher smile returned as Jack and Maddie hoped out of the RV and ran to confront Dan.

"Get your hands off of my son, you no good piece of ectoplasm!" Jack yelled. Dan dispatched him easily with disintegrating him cell by cell with an ecto blast, making sure Danny saw every last second. Dan likewise, killed Maddie with a steady stream of fire, reducing her to nothing more than a charred skeleton.

"No! You killed them!" Danny said weakly, tears falling from his eyes.

"Don't worry, you'll be seeing them soon," Dan said before preparing to deliver the finishing blow. Just before he could finish off this timeline's Danny, the four heroes arrived on the scene. "Oh look, it's the Calvary!"

"Really, this is your master plan? Hunting down and killing me in another timeline?" Danny asked. "Why are you even bothering? It's not going to change anything,"

"Ha! You think this is my master plan?!" Dan replied. "I just needed someone to test my power on since I was incapable of finishing you off previously! Needed to make sure I hadn't lost me edge,"

"You've proven you haven't gotten weaker now let him go!" Sam said.

"Fine," Dan said before placing his hand on Danny's chest and firing a huge blast through it, leaving a gaping bloody hole and killing the boy instantly. Dan then dropped Danny's corpse to the ground before pulling out Clockwork's staff again. "If you want to foil my plan, I suggest following me through the rabbit hole again!"

Dan created another wormhole and hopped through it. Naturally, Team Phantom followed close behind, being whisked to get another timeline.

**In The Next Chapter:  
**  
_**Dan did some looking around while Vlad lied bleeding out to death on the ground. Dan was so caught up with looking for the Ghost Gauntlets, that he didn't notice Vlad crawling over to a plasma cannon on the ground. Vlad propped himself up against the wall and took aim Dan.**_

_**"There you are!" Dan exclaimed, grabbing the Ghost Gauntlets before he heard Vlad's plasma cannon charging. Dan looked over and saw Vlad aiming the plasma cannon at him, a white hot energy ball growing larger and larger at the barrel of the weapon. "Oh crap!"**_

_**Vlad pulled the trigger and the resulting blast was so powerful that it completely obliterated the remains of Vlad's mansion, taking the former billionaire with it. Vlad died with the solace that at least he was able to destroy one Dan along with himself.**_

**Hello there, friends! Merry Christmas! I hope you've enjoyed this chapter of God Save The Queen. Curse you Dan, going around killing alternate versions of Danny Phantom. And where were Sam and Tucker while all of this was going on? And is it just me or does Dan seem to be becoming more and more unhinged as time goes on? Where are our heroes headed to next? Find out in the next exciting installment of God Save The Queen. Now here's the funny thing, I was originally going to post this chapter much earlier, but I decided to hold it off until Christmas Day to make it more special. (Beat) I've just realized that I just admitted to withholding content from you so I'm going to run before you all beat the crap out of me! Bye!**

**Disclaimer: The preceding was a-, wait a minute, do I really need a disclaimer? This fanfic is protected under fair use and I'm not making an profit whatsoever off of this story. If Nickelodeon is so petty as to sue a college student for writing a story based on a cartoon they cancelled 8 years ago, that tells you how well they're doing.**

**Peace out and have a nice day!**


	22. The More Dans The Merrier

**God Save The Queen Chapter 21: A Tale of Two Dans **

The wormhole spat out our heroes in yet another version of Amity Park. This time though, the four could tell that they were in the future. Unlike the future Danny, Sam, and Tucker had previously traveled to, this future was much more optimistic. Technology had advanced to the point of flying cars, the streets seemed cleaner, and Amity Park seemed like a utopia.

"Now where are we?" Tucker asked.

"If I had to guess, I'd say 8 years in the future," Sam said.

"What makes you say that?" Tucker asked.

"Oh, I don't know; maybe the floating neon calendar," Sam replied, pointing towards a giant screen hovering in the sky, displaying the date in neon letters.

"It seems as if Dan has given us the slip again," Valerie noted. "Now what are we going to do? We can't fall for the duplicate trick again,"

"Something tells me Dan has another trick in mind," Danny said. "Let's not waste any time and start looking for him."

"I don't think he's going to be hard to find," Tucker said before pointing up into the sky.

In the sky, Dan was fighting (or rather pummeling) Box Ghost from pillar to post.

"I thought I told you to stay out of my town, Box Freak!" Dan snarled as he clobbered Box Ghost with vicious rights and lefts. "These little insects are my property!"

Dan tossed Box Ghost farther into the air and kicked him in the head. Dan then nearly head butted Box Ghost before shooting him with a blast straight between the eyes. Dan grabbed Box Ghost by the collar of his shirt and looked him in the eyes.

"Now I'm going to give you two options," Dan said. "Option A: You go back to the Ghost Zone and stay away from my town or B) You refuse and subsequently spend the rest of your afterlife in pain. What's it going to be?"

"Option A! Option A!" Box Ghost screamed before Dan sucked him into a thermos.

"You pathetic fool, no matter what you do, you'll still be nothing but a joke to me," Dan laughed.

"Well if you want a serious challenge, why don't you fight me?!" Danny yelled as he flew over to confront Dan. Upon closer inspection, Danny noticed that Dan for some reason had bright green eyes like his own in his usual red eyes.

"What type of trickery is this?!" Dan asked, eyes wide with shock, before Danny kicked him in the chin. "Am I hallucinating again?"

"Your eyes aren't playing tricks on you, I'm here in the flesh," Danny declared, taking up a fighting stance. Danny was surprised when Dan grabbed him in a genuine heartfelt hug

"You can't be real" Dan said, tearing up slightly. "Because I killed you,"

"Uh, can anyone explain why Dan isn't trying to fight or murder Danny and is actually hugging him?" Tucker asked.

Dan heard him and spotted him, Sam, and Valerie. Overwhelmed with joy, Dan floated down and grabbed the two in a tight hug.

"Sam? Tucker? Now I know I'm dreaming; you guys are supposed to be dead!" Dan said. "I've missed you guys so much!"

"Wait, so you're not trying to kill us?" Sam asked, trying to breathe.

"Kill you?" Dan asked, just as confused by the situation as Team Phantom. "Look, what happened all those years ago was an accident, I never intended for any of you to get hurt!"

"Okay, I'll bite," Danny said. "What is wrong with you? Are you trying to confuse us or psyche is out? Is this some sort of trick to get us to let our guard down so you can kill us? What is your deal?"

"What are you talking about?" Dan asked. "I'm not going to kill you. I've been spending the last two decades trying to atone for my mistakes."

"Okay, this is all wrong!" Danny said. "You're a villain! You spent 10 years wreaking havoc on the earth and the ghost zone, killing everyone in your path!"

"Hey Danny, you don't think we're in a timeline where Dan's a hero?" Tucker asked.

"Now it's my turn to ask questions," Dan said. "Where did you guys come from?" He pointed to Danny, Sam, and Tucker. "You three are supposed to be dead." He then pointed at Valerie. "And you seem to have become 10 years younger,"

"Something tells me this isn't the Dan we're looking for," Sam said.

"Wait, there's another me?" Dan asked.

"Yeah, an evil one who in our timeline spent years destroying anything he came across and killing everyone in his path," Danny explained. "He was a psychopath and a complete monster,"

"As much as I hate to admit it, I could've ended up the same way," Dan said before explaining his origin and how things had unfolded in this timeline.

_"Daniel, are you absolutely sure you want to go through with this?" Vlad asked Danny, who lied on an operating table. "There's a chance that you could be killed during the procedure,"_

_"I can't live with the pain and guilt anymore," Danny said solemnly. "Besides, even if I die at least I'll get a chance to see my friends and family again,"_

_Vlad, understanding the boy's pain, began administering the anesthesia. As soon as he was unconscious, Vlad put on his ghost gauntlets. Long, sharp claws extended from its fingers and Vlad used them to try and extract Danny's feelings of turmoil and despair. Something went awry however and Vlad ended up extracting Danny's ghost half. _

_Surprised at being separated from his human half, Phantom lashed out at Vlad, slapping him and knocking him against the wall. While Vlad was temporarily dazed, Phantom used the ghost gauntlets to extract Vlad's ghost half. Acting on impulse, Phantom tried attacking Plasmius, but ended up fusing with his enemy._

_The evil within Plasmius was overwhelming. Phantom screamed in pain as he and Plasmius became one and the same. His body felt like ice yet it burned at the same time. He attempted to open his eyes but he shut them again as the pain was too much for him. However it stopped a moment later as though it had not happened at all._

_When it was all said and done, Phantom looked at his new form. He looked mostly the same, save for blood red eyes in contrast to his usual green, his skin now being green like Plasmius', two sharp fangs in his mouth, and flame like hair. Phantom saw his human self cowering in the corner and driven mad by the fusion, shot an ectoblast through his head, killing him instantly. Phantom couldn't contain his newfound power and in agonizing pain, expelled as much power as possible, destroying Vlad's mansion. Laughing maniacally, the ghost now known as Dan Phantom flew from the carnage, prepared to go on a rampage._

"For a few weeks I destroyed everything in my way in a fit of rage," Dan continued to explain. "However, despite the loss of my human self, it would appear I hadn't lost all of my humanity."

_Dan Phantom had just finished another round of laying waste to part of Amity Park. Dan wanted to draw out the destruction as destroying the entire town in one fell swoop wouldn't be any fun. He wanted to see the looks of fear and despair on people's faces before he killed them. The same looks on the faces of his friends and family and even his human self before they died. Strangely, Dan felt a brief pang of guilt before brushing it aside._

_"What are you doing?" Dan heard a voice in his head._

_"What do you mean what am I doing?" Dan replied to the voice. "I'm destroying these pathetic mortals, that's what I'm doing!"_

_"I know that, but what's the point of all this?" The voice asked. "What have these people done to you?"_

_"I don't need a reason!" Dan snarled. "I do what I please, after all who's going to stop me?"_

_"What do you think our parents would say if they could see us now?" The voice asked._

_"They probably wouldn't say anything as much as dedicate themselves to hunting down and killing us," Dan replied._

_"Well what about Jazz? Or Sam and Tucker? What would they think?" The voice asked._

_"Leave me alone! What I do is my business and my business alone!" Dan snapped._

_"Well considering the fact that I am a part of your psyche…" The voice replied. "You tried running from your mistakes and that got them killed. Then you tried running from your mistakes again which is what got you here in the first place. How many times are you going to run away from your mistakes before you take responsibility for what you did?"_

_"Shut up!" Dan roared, shooting off a stray blast. He clutched his head, not sure if he was starting to go insane._

_"Nothing's going to change what happened, but the least you could do is dedicate the rest of your unlife to the memory of everyone you lost rather than take it out on innocent people," The voice said._

_"If it'll shut you up for five minutes, then fine; I'll help these pathetic idiots!" Dan roared grasping his head in pain._

"I'm still far from the naive optimistic fool I once was, no offense" Dan said to Danny.

"Some taken," Danny replied.

"While I may not be the all loving hero I once was, I still fight to protect this town," Dan said. "This is my territory and I won't let anybody terrorize it but me!"

Dan smirked and said "Although, it's not like I have anything to worry about. After all, who is powerful enough to pose even the slightest threat to me?"

"Yeah, about that," Danny said before he and his friends started to explain.

##########################################

Meanwhile, our villain was taking a look around, waiting for the right opportunity to strike.

"Hmm, I forgot how beautiful this city was before I burned it to the ground," Dan said, nostalgic memories flooding his mind. "That does beg the question though, why hasn't this timeline's version of me done the same to this place?"

Dan smiled and thought to himself "Maybe I'll do him a favor and destroy it myself!"

Dan had a stop to make before confronting his alternate self. Dan flew low to the ground to avoid suspicion, until he was far outside of Amity Park. Dan realized he could easily give Team Phantom the slip by jumping into another timeline and returning later, but decided against it, not wanting to have to make second trips. If Team Phantom got in the way and managed to defeat him, he could always rewind time.

Dan continued flying until he finally reached his destination: the charred remains of an old castle. Smiling, Dan floated down and walked among the ruins, phasing through debris until he reached a staircase leading to the basement. With any luck, what he was looking for could still be in good condition in the remains of the building. Tossing the rubble aside, Dan entered the basement and found that much to his surprise, many of the gadgets and inventions were still intact.

"So you've finally come back?" He heard a voice say. Dan turned his head and saw an older Vlad Masters standing before him.

"So you're still alive?" Dan asked. "Man, I have got to do a better job when it comes to tying up loose ends,"

"Why have you come back here? Haven't you caused enough trouble?" Vlad asked.

"Apparently not, seeing as Amity Park is still standing," Dan retorted. "If you were so worried about the trouble I could have been causing, why didn't you come out of hiding in the ten years since my birth?"

"I've been trying to come up with a way to atone for my mistakes and eliminate you once and for all," Vlad explained.

"Well if you're trying to destroy me, then maybe you'd like my help?" Dan said.

"What are you talking about?" Vlad asked.

"You see, I'm from a different time stream and I'm looking for my counterpart in this timeline," Dan explained. "What do you say the two of us team up?"

"I'd never ally with a monster such as yourself!" Vlad replied.

"Hmm, doesn't make any difference," Dan said before firing a blast through Vlad's stomach. "I was going to kill you anyway. Now where are those Ghost Gauntlets?"

Dan did some looking around while Vlad lied bleeding out to death on the ground. Dan was so caught up with looking for the Ghost Gauntlets, that he didn't notice Vlad crawling over to a plasma cannon on the ground. Vlad propped himself up against the wall and took aim Dan.

"There you are!" Dan exclaimed, grabbing the Ghost Gauntlets before he heard Vlad's plasma cannon charging. Dan looked over and saw Vlad aiming the plasma cannon at him, a white hot energy ball growing larger and larger at the barrel of the weapon. "Oh crap!"

Vlad pulled the trigger and the resulting blast was so powerful that it completely obliterated the remains of Vlad's mansion, taking the former billionaire with it. Vlad died with the solace that at least he was able to destroy one Dan along with himself.

"Thank goodness I stole this from the old fuck," Dan said, pulling out Clockwork's staff. "If I hadn't stopped time to allow myself to get out of the way, that blast could've easily destroyed me."

Dan smiled as he looked down at the Ghost Gauntlets. Something told him he'd need them for later. Now to move on to hunting down himself and then eliminating Danny.

#############################################################

"So could you please tell me why an alternate universe version of myself is here in my timeline?" Dan asked.

"We wish we knew," Valerie replied. "All we know is that he's out there somewhere, causing trouble,"

"Well maybe if we're lucky he'll come straight to us," Dan said, smiling at the thought of facing someone as strong as he was. He was about to get what he wanted.

"Be careful what you wish for," the Evil Dan said, making his entrance. "You might just get it,"

**In The Next Chapter:**

_**The two Dans charged at each other, each of them throwing heavy blows. Dan landed the first strike with a punch to **__**Dan's**__** jaw. **__**Dan **__**answered back with a punch to Dan's right eye. Neither of them hesitated to throw another punch, but this time both of them dodged the other's blow. **__**Dan**__** grabbed Dan's arm when the latter attempted to throw a punch and elbowed him in the chin. Dan growled and kicked at **__**Dan's**__** arm. **__**Dan**__** tried catching Dan's leg, but missed and was struck just beneath the shoulder. **__**Dan**__** briefly grasped at his arm, but retaliated by punching Dan in the gut and then backhanded him across the face.**_

_**Dan was sent hurtling several meters before correcting himself and catching a charging **__**Dan**__** with a roundhouse kick to the side of the head. Dan followed up with a two quick punches to the face and an uppercut. Dan kept up the attack with a knee to the stomach and a slap across **__**Dan's**__** chest. The other Dan was quick to fight back, waiting for Dan to fly at him before using his legs to launch Dan into into the air.**_

_**Dan**__** followed after him and bombarded Dan with continuous kicks to the chest, launching the evil fusion farther into the air. **__**Dan**__** then flew above Dan and kicked the latter in the back, sending Dan flying towards the ground. Dan stopped himself a few meters above the ground, and turned around to face his good self. He flew at **__**Dan**__**, but at the last minute diverted his course, flying above **__**Dan**__**. When **__**Dan**__** looked up, Dan smashed his foot in **__**Dan's**__** face. **__**Dan**__** was surprised by the attack and took a moment to regain his composure. Dan took advantage by following it up with a devastating blow to the face. **__**Dan**__** caught Dan's fist when the latter went for another punch and uppercutted Dan before kicking his legs out from underneath him, leaving Dan floating upside down in the air. **__**Dan**__** followed up by kicking Dan's head like a football, sending Dan flying higher into the air. **__**Dan**__** followed after him once again and palm struck Dan in the chest, knocking the evil Phantom backwards a couple of meters. Once Dan caught himself, he intercepted an attack from **__**Dan**__** with a backhanded slap across the face**_.

**That's right, a good version of Dan Phantom. Why? Because I always wondered what would happen if Dark Danny had kept his heroic heart or his conscience when he fused with Plasmius. In my mind, the result would be an all powerful, but ruthless ghost who'd take no nonsense while defending his city. He'd be much more brutal in his tactics but he wouldn't go out of his way to cause unnecessary injury unless pushed too far. I may or may not expand on the good Dan's history and what happened in his timeline during the ten years following his creation. Or maybe I'll make it a spin off. By the way, I'd like to wish everyone a Happy New Year. May this year bring peace and prosperity to all of you. Do we need a disclaimer?**

**Eddie: No.**

**Peter: I don't think a disclaimer is really necessary.**

**Neither do I. So as always I've been Timothy D and I wish you all a good day. Peace!**


	23. Dan Vs Dan

**God Save The Queen Chapter 22: Dan Vs. Dan**

Author's Note: Dan = Evil Dan, Dan = Good Dan

"Are you serious?!" Dan asked his good counterpart, having listened to the conversation and not sure if he wanted to burst into laughter or puke. "You're a good guy?! Don't tell me you "saw the error of your ways and had a change of heart"!"

"Unlike you, I retained my conscience," the other Dan replied. "And even though it could be a pain in the ass at times, it reminded me that I was a hero!"

"Don't act so high and mighty, if you're anything like myself, I know you've killed dozens of people!" Dan argued. The good Dan didn't reply. "I'll take your silence as a yes. Face it, you're not a hero; you're only doing this out of guilt!"

"Guilt or not, I'm going to put a stop to this before you can cause any more trouble!" Dan replied before turning to Team Phantom. "I want you all to stay out of this; this is my fight, understand?"

"But he's our enemy," Danny argued. "There's no need in getting yourself involved, we can handle him ourselves"

"As if I can't?" Dan retorted. "Stay out of this fight. I want him for myself, got it?"

"We're not going to-" Sam tried to protest.

"THIS IS MY FIGHT!" Dan yelled, his eyes glowing red and his flaming hair burning much more intensely as he formed a barrier to prevent Danny, Sam, Tucker, and Valerie from interfering. Just to ensure they wouldn't interfere, Dan knocked out the group with an energy wave. "ALL OF YOU STAY OUT OF MY WAY!"

"You really should have accepted their help," Dan told Dan. "Your little hero syndrome has made you too soft in the heart. This shouldn't take too long."

"And your cold hearted cruelty got you imprisoned for two years in a cramped thermos," Dan pointed out, smirking. "If you think I'm just going to lie down, you've got another thing coming!"

The two Dans charged at each other, each of them throwing heavy blows. Dan landed the first strike with a punch to Dan's jaw. Dan answered back with a punch to Dan's right eye. Neither of them hesitated to throw another punch, but this time both of them dodged the other's blow. Dan grabbed Dan's arm when the latter attempted to throw a punch and elbowed him in the chin. Dan growled and kicked at Dan's arm. Dan tried catching Dan's leg, but missed and was struck just beneath the shoulder. Dan briefly grasped at his arm, but retaliated by punching Dan in the gut and then backhanded him across the face.

Dan was sent hurtling several meters before correcting himself and catching a charging Dan with a roundhouse kick to the side of the head. Dan followed up with a two quick punches to the face and an uppercut. Dan kept up the attack with a knee to the stomach and a slap across Dan's chest. The other Dan was quick to fight back, waiting for Dan to fly at him before using his legs to launch Dan into into the air.

Dan followed after him and bombarded Dan with continuous kicks to the chest, launching the evil fusion farther into the air. Dan then flew above Dan and kicked the latter in the back, sending Dan flying towards the ground. Dan stopped himself a few meters above the ground, and turned around to face his good self. He flew at Dan, but at the last minute diverted his course, flying above Dan. When Dan looked up, Dan smashed his foot in Dan's face. Dan was surprised by the attack and took a moment to regain his composure. Dan took advantage by following it up with a devastating blow to the face. Dan caught Dan's fist when the latter went for another punch and uppercutted Dan before kicking his legs out from underneath him, leaving Dan floating upside down in the air. Dan followed up by kicking Dan's head like a football, sending Dan flying higher into the air. Dan followed after him once again and palm struck Dan in the chest, knocking the evil Phantom backwards a couple of meters. Once Dan caught himself, he intercepted an attack from Dan with a backhanded slap across the face.

Both Dans ceased their fighting for just a moment and stared at each other. Dan had an absolutely psychotic smile on his face, this is what he had been waiting for. For the first time in almost a decade, he was facing off against someone equally as powerful as him. If he believed in Santa Claus, he would've sworn today was Christmas. Dan on the other hand, was analyzing his opponent. He knew he'd have to fight hard to neutralize this alternate version of himself and couldn't make the mistake of underestimating him like he had done with his past self.

The ceasefire didn't last long as the two ghosts lunged at each other once again. The two ducked a punch from one another and tried to land a kick. Their legs collided with such force that it created a shockwave. The Dans grabbed their legs and hissed in pain with Dan shooting a blast at his good counterpart. Dan deflected the blast with ease and delivered an uppercut to Dan. He launched his knee into Dan's gut and then blasted him in the face. Dan was sent flying a couple meters before correcting himself and firing a retaliation blast at Dan. Dan then formed two ectoplasmic balls and hurled them at Dan. At just the last moment however, the two balls turned and collided with each other, creating an explosion that blocked Dan's vision, allowing Dan to surprise him by flying out of the smoke cloud and delivering a vicious punch to the face.

Dan kept Dan off guard with seemingly random strikes to the body. Dan palm struck Dan in the chest, knocking his good counterpart back a couple of meters. Dan pounced on him, kicking him in the chest repeatedly, knocking Dan back further and further with each kick. Finally, Dan caught hold of one of Dan's legs and began rapidly spinning around before releasing Dan, sending him flying into a building. Dan then began using one of the powers he had inherited from Plasmius, teleportation, to appear before Dan at random and deliver brutal, lightning fast punches. One punch caught Dan in the nose, another under the chin, and another to the body. Within seconds, Dan was popping in and out of nowhere around Dan in rapid succession, punches and kicks hammering the Ultimate Enemy from all around. The random attack pattern made it almost impossible for Dan to dodge or guard himself and Dan was going to take full advantage of that fact. After a few minutes of the continued onslaught of punches and kicks, green ectoplasm was dripping down Dan's head and from his nose. Dan started to become dizzy and dropped to one knee, closing his eyes so he could concentrate. At just the right moment, Dan opened his eyes in time to catch an incoming punch from his good counterpart. Dan didn't hesitate to counter by raising his leg to kick Dan in the jaw.

"Are you even taking this fight serious?" Dan asked mockingly. "I haven't even broken a sweat kicking your backside. Honestly, I could've gotten a better fight out of a broomstick,"

Dan growled and decided to use some tricks of his own. Creating a smokescreen, Dan eluded the good Dan before creating a duplicate and going invisible. When the smoke cleared, Dan charged at the duplicate, thinking it was the real thing. He was surprised when Dan took advantage and attacked him from behind, smashing his fists into Dan's skull. The duplicate joined in, striking Dan in the back when the latter turned around to confront the real Dan. Dan turned around to deal with him, but that only left him vulnerable to a roundhouse kick to the back of the head from Dan. Frustrated, Dan stuck out both arms and fired a blast at both Dan and his duplicate. Dan managed to get out of the way; his duplicate, not so much. That didn't matter to Dan though, who surprised Dan with a punch to the gut and then a kick to the chin and a chop to the neck before poking Dan in the eyes and blasting him in the chest.

"What was that about getting a better fight out of a broomstick?" Dan asked. "I warned you before the fight not to underestimate me. Now it seems you're paying the price for your arrogance. So, are you ready to surrender and admit defeat?"

Dan got back to his feet with a psychotic grin that creeped out even Dan and said "Are you kidding me? I haven't had this much fun in ages! Shame you're nothing more than a homicidal maniac, I'd love to keep you around so we could fight again,"

"I'm a homicidal maniac?" Dan retorted. "You're almost frothing at the mouth at the chance to fight me. And you've certainly killed people before, you're no better than I am; and I know you still haven't lost your bloodlust and your desire to kill!"

"You're absolutely right," Dan agreed with him, his manic grin growing wider by the second. "For years I've been repressing my urge to kill for the sake of those around me. Now, ironically, I have someone that I want to spare for the sake of a good fight but have to kill for the sake of everyone else, but at least I can finally satisfy my urge to kill once again!"

Dan took a step back and shook his head in disbelief, trying to fathom how his heroic counterpart could be even crazier than he was. Dan didn't even think that was possible. Dan quickly got his head back in the game and the fight resumed. The fight resumed with the two throwing strikes at each other. Dan's fist caught Dan in the left eye while the latter's kick simultaneously hit Dan in the right cheek. Dan started haphazardly throwing punches left and right, which his villainous self barely managed to dodge. Dan took advantage of his recklessness by blasting Dan in the face and shocking him with a ghost stinger.

Dan was barely slowed down by the attack and retaliated with a ghost stinger of his own, throwing a couple of fireballs at Dan for good measure. Dan shielded himself from the fireballs and blocked an attack from Dan with his forearms. He punched Dan in the face only for Dan to retaliate by biting his hand. Dan hissed in pain and threw a vicious head butt at Dan, temporarily slowing him down.

Dan realized that his adversary was becoming much more aggressive as the fight dragged on. The other Dan was taking more risks, throwing caution to the wind at various times, and leaving his guard down more than once. Dan wondered if this was because Dan was willing to do anything to put him down at this point or if Dan's dormant bloodlust was taking over.

Whatever the case, it made Dan a much more dangerous opponent. Dan charged at Dan before going invisible at the last second and reappearing behind Dan. Dan attacked Dan with a stream of fire, burning the evil Phantom and causing him to hiss in pain. Dan turned around and received a roundhouse kick, sending him hurtling back a couple of meters.

"Oh to hell with this!" Dan barked as soon as he recovered before taking a deep breath so he could perform his signature attack.

At just that moment, Danny and his friends were waking up from Dan's attack and observed the fight from beyond the barrier.

"Sheesh, what the heck is his problem?" Tucker asked, rubbing the back of his head as he and the others got back to their feet. "I thought this Dan was supposed to be a good guy,"

"I guess he was serious about wanting Dan all to himself," Danny said. "No time to waste, let's get out of here so we can help him if Dan ends up overwhelming him,"

With that said, Danny and Sam turned intangible, grabbed Valerie and Tucker and tunneled beneath the barrier to the other side.

Meanwhile, Dan had immediately caught on to Dan's plan and took a deep breath to charge up the Ghostly Wail to counter his attack. The two unleashed their Ghostly Wails with all the power they could muster, although Dan made sure to hold back just a little bit. The attacks collided and the conflict between the two Dans were evenly matched for the time being. Then it seemed as if Dan just gave up, being overwhelmed by Dan's attack and crashing into the ground below. Satisfied and certain he had gotten the victory, Dan floated down to Dan and grabbed him by his collar to gloat.

"So this is the dreaded version of me that past self fears so much?" Dan said, rubbing it in his rival's face. "Although I have to admit you did give me a run for my money,"

"Don't waste time gloating! Finish him off!" Danny yelled at him.

"I THOUGHT I TOLD YOU NOT TO GET INVOLVED!" Dan responded.

The momentary distraction gave Dan all the time he needed. Suddenly springing to life, Dan turned intangible and attacked Dan, as if he were trying to overshadow him. Immediately the two ghosts began fusing together, all while Dan's evil laughter rang through the air. Dan's laughter quickly turned to a scream as he absorbed his good counterpart to become one being. Electricity cackled around his body as he started growing larger and slightly more muscular. His flaming hair started burning much more intensely and changed to pure white and his eyes glowed blood red while Danny, Sam, Tucker, and Valerie could only watch and observe in horror. When it was all said and done, Dan simply stood there, taking a moment to feel his new power. He then turned his head slightly towards the gang and turned his gaze towards them in the most unsettling fashion. He didn't say a word, he didn't laugh or even chuckle. All he did was curl his lips into a smirk as Team Phantom stood there in shock.

**In The Next Chapter:**

_**Dan stared daggers at Team Phantom, having more than enough power to easily wipe the floor with them. That would be too easy for him though. Dan wanted to make sure each and every one of them suffered as much pain as possible before he killed them. Despite the increase in power Dan got from absorbing his alternate self, Danny, Sam, and Valerie refused stand down or show any signs of fear. Tucker meanwhile was cowering behind Valerie, only able to look on, knowing what was coming next. Suddenly Dan let out an agonizing scream and began glowing green. Without warning, Dan shot out a huge wave of energy, almost completely leveling Amity Park and reducing it to a pile of rubble. Somehow, our four heroes escaped unscathed.**_

_**"It would appear that my increase in power was too much for my body to handle for a moment," Dan noticed. "I'll have to expend some energy every so often if I wish to contain this power without exploding like a balloon. And what better way to expend some energy than by beating those goodie goodies to a pulp**_?"

#####################################################

_**Dan charged up a huge powerful blast to vaporize Danny and his friends but for some reason he couldn't pull the trigger. No, there wasn't any emotional connection preventing him from killing them, he couldn't kill them almost as if his body were rebelling against him. Dan tried once again to blast them but again his body refused to let him deal the finishing blow.**_

_**"What is going on?" Dan asked himself if frustration. Suddenly, a voice identical to his own rang out in his head.**_

_**"You can't kill them, other self," the voice said. "I won't let you!"**_

_**"You! I thought I'd absorbed you! What are you doing interfering in my plans?!" Dan yelled at the voice. **_

_**"You may have fused with me and your consciousness may be in control, but that doesn't mean I can't control of some parts of your body every once in a while," **__**Dan**__** said to Dan within the latter's own head.**_

_**"How did you maintain your consciousness?" Dan asked frustrated.**_

_**"Oh come now, you didn't think that just because you took my body into your own that I'd go away, did you?" **__**Dan**__** replied. "I'm now a part of you, not just in body but in mind as well, meaning I can prevent you from doing certain things, such as killing our friends. Every time you try, I'll be there to stop you."**_

_**"Fine, you can't protect these brats forever, you'll slip up and when you do, I'll make my move," Dan said to **__**Dan**__** before grabbing an unconscious Sam and slinging her over his shoulder. He then turned to Danny and said. "I hope you don't mind, but I'll be taking our lovely Samantha with me,"**_

_**Dan opened up another time portal and jumped through it. Danny knew he'd have to move quickly to make it through the portal before it closed. Danny grabbed Tucker and Valerie by their wrists and tried to jump through the time portal before it closed**_. _**He was a split second too late however, allowing Dan to escape.**_

**So was that Dan's plan all along? To fuse with an alternate version of himself to gain more power? That clever dastardly fiend. So the preview might give away a few things, but I still recommend you tune in to the next chapter to see what happens next. Things are picking up and Dan is on a roll. Will Team Phantom be able to stop him before he does irreversible damage to all of time and space? You'll have to keep reading to find out. I'm going out to see the new Deadpool movie today and since I probably wouldn't have time during the rest of the day to update this story, I decided to update it now. Have a good day and peace out! By the way, did anyone get the reference in the chapter title?**


	24. A Curb Stomp Battle

**God Save The Queen Chapter 23: A Curb Stomp Battle**

Dan stared daggers at Team Phantom, having more than enough power to easily wipe the floor with them. That would be too easy for him though. Dan wanted to make sure each and every one of them suffered as much pain as possible before he killed them. Despite the increase in power Dan got from absorbing his alternate self, Danny, Sam, and Valerie refused stand down or show any signs of fear. Tucker meanwhile was cowering behind Valerie, only able to look on, knowing what was coming next. Suddenly Dan let out an agonizing scream and began glowing green. Without warning, Dan shot out a huge wave of energy, almost completely leveling Amity Park and reducing it to a pile of rubble. Somehow, our four heroes escaped unscathed.

"It would appear that my increase in power was too much for my body to handle for a moment," Dan noticed. "I'll have to expend some energy every so often if I wish to contain this power without exploding like a balloon. And what better way to expend some energy than by beating those goodie goodies to a pulp?"

Dan then turned his attention to Team Phantom, who were crawling out for under the rubble.

"So are you still willing to fight me or will you run and live to fight another day?" Dan asked the heroes.

"You're crazy if you think we're going to back down!" Sam said.

"We'll fight you to the death if it means stopping you!" Danny continued.

"Just going to say this now, those two do not speak for all of us!" Tucker yelled out, still cowering behind Valerie.

"Bring it on!" Valerie shouted.

"Seriously, I'm not with them," Tucker said, realizing just how helpless the team would be if they fought Dan.

"Tucker, what is wrong with you?" Valerie asked.

"What's wrong with me? If you haven't noticed, Dan just fused with another version of himself. We were just barely able to fight him to a draw pre fusion," Tucker pointed out. "If we fight him in this state, we'll be massacred,"

"Well what else can we do?" Sam asked. "There's no way he'll let us back down and even if he does, nothing will be able to stop him from conquering the multiverse,"

"I don't know what we can do, but I just feel so helpless," Tucker admitted.

"We all feel helpless," Danny said. "But we have no other choice but to fight him,"

"Hey, are you guys ready to fight or do you want to run away with your tails tucked in between your legs?" Dan asked.

"We're not running anywhere, we're staying right here to fight you!" Danny replied.

"Excellent, because I have to admit, waiting around for you idiots to make your decision was really starting to bore the fuck out of me!" Dan shouted before charging at Danny.

Danny just barely managed to move out of the way of a punch from Dan and fought back with a kick to the side of Dan's head. Dan didn't even flinch and punched Danny in the gut. Almost all the breath was driven out of Danny, who vomited as a result of the punch. Danny thought he might have broken ribs as a result of the punch as he remained doubled over in pain.

"What's wrong? Was that too much for you to handle?" Dan asked. "Well if that was too much for you, try wrapping your head around this. I was holding back a lot of my power when I punched you. You can always surrender if you don't want to get hurt."

"Not a chance," Danny groaned, quickly recovering from the attack and attempting to upper cut Dan.

Once again, Dan barely reacted at all and smashed his head into Danny's, sending the teen flying. Dan used his speed to appear behind Danny and kicking him in the lower back. Dan then grabbed Danny's arm and brought it down across his knee, nearly fracturing Danny's arm. While Danny gripped his arm in pain, Dan gave delivered one light kick to Danny's chance and despite barely putting any effort into the attack, the kick sent Danny hurtling back a couple of meters until the teen caught himself. Dan shot a couple of fireballs at Danny, who created a wall of ice to defend himself from the attack. The ice barely managed to hold out against Dan's fiery attack and quickly melted. The ice wall did give Danny a cover that allowed him to sneak upon on Dan and drop kick him in the back of the head. This attack did actually have some effect on Dan and briefly left him seeing stars. Danny attempted to follow up with a punch to the face, but Dan saw it coming and caught Danny's arm and bent it backwards before punching Danny in the stomach again. Danny recovered much more quickly this time and moved back to think of a game plan. Dan quickly closed the distance between them, not giving Danny a chance to think and punched him in the face.

Danny then remembered how he managed to fight off Dan earlier and realized he'd need to utilize his speed if he wanted to have a chance at holding off Dan. Flying as fast as he could, Dan tried to attack Dan from behind once again. Dan intercepted him however and punched Danny in the face. Danny quickly disappeared and tried surprising Dan once again, but Dan once again saw him coming and beat him to the punch, slamming shoulder first into Danny with all his might, knocking Danny back a couple of meters. A third attempt at catching Dan off guard using speed failed when Dan caught Danny coming at him from above and kicked him in the chest, sending Danny flying up into the air. In addition to Dan's increase in raw power, his speed increased as well allowing Dan to counter all of Danny's speed based offense. Dan grabbed Danny by his throat and held him above him head.

Sam then tried attacking a preoccupied Dan from behind, but Dan intercepted her by elbowing her in the stomach. He dropped Danny and kicked Sam in the face. Sam recovered and head butt Dan in the face. Dan gave her a head butt in response and back handed her across the face. Dan grabbed Sam's head and then kneed her in the face, the force of the blow nearly giving Sam a skull fracture and almost knocking her out cold.

Tucker and Valerie tried a surprised combined attack, coming at Dan from both sides. Dan quickly dodged however and the two crashed into each other. Dan took advantage and executed a spin kick on Valerie and a palm strike on Tucker. After recovering, all four of our protagonists attempted to attack Dan at the same time. Dan sidestepped Tucker and kicked him in the back. He dodged a double ax handle strike from Valerie and elbowed her in the forehead, knocking her down. When Sam restrained Dan with her vines and punching him in the face, Dan escaped, ducked Sam's punch, and swatted her aside as if she were a gnat. Danny tried blasting Dan, but Dan disappeared and reappeared behind Danny and blasted him in the back. When Danny turned around and swung at him, Dan used his good counterpart's trick from their fight and appeared behind, above, below, and in front of Danny at random. However Dan refrained from attacking until Danny was too confused by Dan's rapid movements at which point, Dan hit Danny with a double axe handle to the head, sending Danny crashing into the ground. Sam blasted Dan in the eyes and attempted to take advantage but Dan intercepted her attack by kneeing her in the stomach and then roundhouse kicking her in the head.

When Valerie came back for more, Dan executed a back flip kick, hurtling Valerie into the air before he reappeared above her and punched her in the head, knocking her back down. Tucker tried sneaking up on Dan to blast him with a weapon, but stopped dead in his tracks when Dan turned around and caught him in the act. Dan raised his fist and laughed when Tucker instinctively threw his hands up in defense and shrank back a little bit. When Tucker opened his eyes, he was met with a huge ectoblast, that send him flying back several meters. Dan reappeared above Danny and Sam's head and punched them both in the head before cutting off Valerie by planting both feet into her chest.

""Oh, we should fight them" they said," Tucker said. ""We have no other choice" they said. Just how do I get into these messes?"

Danny and Sam combined their efforts, shooting at Dan with a duel ectoblast. Dan laughed and flew straight through the blast to clothesline the couple. Admittedly, the display of showboating ended up getting him a couple of burns, but Dan shrugged them off. He grabbed Sam by the leg and hit Dan in the torso with her before tossing Sam into the air and blasting her. He grabbed Danny by his head and tossed him towards the ground as hard as he could. Valerie took advantage while Dan was distracted and fired a rocket at him. This time Dan didn't make an attempt to dodge the rocket at all and in fact caught it in his hand. He then tossed the rocket back at Valerie before blasting it, causing it to explode and taking Valerie out of the fight, leaving her wounded.

Tucker immediately attacked Dan with a fury, brandishing a sword. Tucker actually did the best of all the fighters, managing to slash Dan across the chest several times. Dan however wasn't going to that easily and grabbed the sword out of Tucker's hands, tossing it aside. Danny and Sam came to Tucker's aid, surprising Dan with a double kick to the side of the head. Dan retaliated by knocking Sam out with a fiery punch followed by a brutal roundhouse kick that sent her crashing into the ground. That left two fighters. Tucker was dispatched with ease with one simple blast, rendering him unable to keep fighting. Dan finished the one sided battle by incapacitating Danny with one big powerful blast. Dan then floated down to the four defeated heroes, prepared to finish them off.

"I must thank the four of you for providing me a decent warmup to test my newfound power," Dan said. "But it's time I finished this once and for all."

Dan charged up a huge powerful blast to vaporize Danny and his friends but for some reason he couldn't pull the trigger. No, there wasn't any emotional connection preventing him from killing them, he couldn't kill them almost as if his body were rebelling against him. Dan tried once again to blast them but again his body refused to let him deal the finishing blow.

"What is going on?" Dan asked himself in frustration. Suddenly, a voice identical to his own rang out in his head.

"You can't kill them, other self," the voice said. "I won't let you!"

"You! I thought I'd absorbed you! What are you doing interfering in my plans?!" Dan yelled at the voice.

"You may have fused with me and your consciousness may be in control, but that doesn't mean I can't control of some parts of your body every once in a while," Dan said to Dan within the latter's own head.

"How did you maintain your consciousness?" Dan asked frustrated.

"Oh come now, you didn't think that just because you took my body into your own that I'd go away, did you?" Dan replied. "I'm now a part of you, not just in body but in mind as well, meaning I can prevent you from doing certain things, such as killing our friends. Every time you try, I'll be there to stop you."

"Fine, you can't protect these brats forever, you'll slip up and when you do, I'll make my move," Dan said to Dan before grabbing an unconscious Sam and slinging her over his shoulder. He then turned to Danny and said. "I hope you don't mind, but I'll be taking our lovely Samantha with me,"

Dan opened up another time portal and jumped through it. Danny knew he'd have to move quickly to make it through the portal before it closed. Danny grabbed Tucker and Valerie by their wrists and tried to jump through the time portal before it closed. He was a split second too late however, allowing Dan to escape.

Danny cursed himself for being too slow and wondered how he'd be able to keep track of Dan now. Just then, another time portal opened up before him.

"How convenient," Danny thought to himself before grabbing Valerie and Tucker and jumping through the portal to continue the chase.

**In The Next Chapter:**

_**World devastation could wait until later, as soon as he was at 100 percent, Phantom decided that he would begin training to both learn new skills and hone the ones he already had. The Ghost Zone had a wide variety of freaks with special abilities, maybe he'd be able to convince some of them to teach him some new tricks.**_

_**It took several days, but eventually Phantom was up and about at full health. After a couple of weeks scouring the Ghost Zone for anyone with something skill he could find useful, he stumbled upon a tribe of psionics. Phantom already had some grasp on using psychokinesis, but his ability wasn't nearly as potent as these ghosts. Being psychics, these ghosts could easily read his mind and detect his malevolent intentions, and thus refused to teach Dan how to perfectly perform telekinesis. They never stood a chance. Despite having the psychic advantage, Phantom ruthlessly slaughtered many of them without breaking a sweat until finally the leader of the tribe agreed to teach Phantom if he ceased the massacre of his people. It took Phantom several weeks, but eventually he managed to master psychokinesis with relative ease. Seeing as the tribe were no longer of any use to him, Phantom disposed of them so that he was the only telekinetic master in the entire Ghost Zone. Now who would be test this newfound ability on? He had plethora of old rogues that he was eager to exact revenge on so who first? Skulker? Too easy. Ember? She could wait until later. Box Ghost? Not even worth the time or effort. Finally Phantom settled on his first victim: Walker.**_

**And just like that another chapter has been completed. We're getting near the midway point of this story arc. Now what are Team Phantom going to do, they're way out of their league now that Dan has absorbed his alternate self. What will they do? Will Danny possibly find his own alternate self to fuse with to match Dan's power? No, that seems like a total ass pull or deus ex machina. There has to be something Team Phantom can do to defeat this Ultimate Menace before he destroys all of time and space.**


	25. A Whole New World

**God Save The Queen Chapter 24: A Whole New World**

**First, let me apologize for the late update and missing last month. I thought that I had updated this story some time last month, but alas, I broke my promise to update monthly. I'm so sorry, it's just that school really got in the way (I had to do 7 papers, one of which had to be 16 pages long, not to mention studying for finals). To make up for missing last month, there'll be two new chapters this month. *Turns and puts hands over my head* Punish me however you wish. Enjoy this little filler.**

After what seemed like hours of fighting, the clash was finally over. Amity Park's seemingly last hope was apparently on her last legs. Both combatants had gone all out, not holding back at all, but in the end, only one could come out victorious. That victor happened to be the new Spectre who called himself Phantom. Similar in appearance to the missing Danny Phantom, this ghost was nothing but pure evil. In such a short period of time, he had terrorized the town, causing an untold amount of destruction and death in his wake. Soon, the only hope was a mysterious young woman who Phantom referred to as Valerie. The two fought and unfortunately, Phantom managed to overcome everything Valerie threw at him to emerge victorious.

Both combatants looked like they had been in the middle of a war zone. Valerie's suit was missing several chunks of armor, revealing dark bruised and swollen flesh underneath. She had multiple lacerations on her torso and arms, blood seeping from them. Her ribs were almost completely broken, making it difficult for her to draw air into her lungs and hurting her every time she tried to move. Her left leg was broken with a small bit of bone visible. Valerie had burns all over her back and it felt as if her spine was broken too. Virtually the only part of her suit left in tact was her helmet, which hid her swollen and bruised face. Valerie's right eye had even been popped out of its socket.

Phantom barely looked any better; he had suffered burns on a majority of his body. Phantom's right eye was completely gone, leaving on a swirling mass of green ectoplasm in its place. Phantom wasn't too concerned about his missing eye, as he knew he could simple regenerate. The entirety of Phantom's left arm from the elbow down was also gone and he had a saber protruding through his gut and coming out from his back. If this were a movie, Phantom probably would've collapsed and dissolved into ectoplasm while Valerie would receive medical attention and survive. This was no movie however.

Civilians gathered around, looking on in fear as Phantom approached their last hope. Mothers held their children tightly in their arms while simultaneously praying for some type of salvation that wouldn't come. Valerie, her body broken and mangled, struggled to get to her feet, determined to defend her home town no matter what the cost or no matter how bleak the outcome appeared. Phantom put a stop to that by gently nudging her with his foot, kicking Valerie onto her back. Valerie looked up at the sky and struggled to breathe, fading in and out of consciousness from the blood loss.

"You put up a good fight," Phantom muttered, barely audible. "You have nothing to be ashamed of. Because I had such a great time fighting you, I've decided to spare Amity Park… for now,"

Phantom raised his arm and with only a finger, shot a tiny ectobeam straight through Valerie's chest, piercing her heart and putting her out of her misery. Phantom then turned to the frightened citizens and said to them "As you can all see, I don't have the energy to destroy your pathetic little city right now. For that reason, you plebeians have ten more years to live,".

The effects of Phantom's battle caught up to Phantom as the maniacal ghost dropped to his knees and coughed up some ectoplasm. Phantom quickly regained his composure, smiled and rose back to his feet before continuing. "When I return however, I expect you to have someone capable of giving me a good fight!"

With that, Phantom disappeared, leaving the people of Amity Park relieved that the nightmare was over for the time being. Phantom retreated back to FentonWorks so he could heal from his injuries. Had Phantom fought any other human, he could've healed from his injuries almost instantaneously, but these wounds would take some time to heal. The psychopath was still surprised by just how much of a fight Valerie had put up. Phantom groaned in pain as he removed the saber from his abdomen. He looked at the missing stub that had been his left arm while grabbing at the missing mass where his eye once was. Phantom swore to himself to never let another being, whether they be human or ghost, injure him to this point. This was a wake up call for him. He may have been substantially stronger thanks to the fusion with Plasmius, but he was still vulnerable. World devastation could wait until later, as soon as he was at 100 percent, Phantom decided that he would begin training to both learn new skills and hone the ones he already had. The Ghost Zone had a wide variety of freaks with special abilities, maybe he'd be able to convince some of them to teach him some new tricks.

It took several days, but eventually Phantom was up and about at full health. After a couple of weeks scouring the Ghost Zone for anyone with something skill he could find useful, he stumbled upon a tribe of psionics. Phantom already had some grasp on using psychokinesis, but his ability wasn't nearly as potent as these ghosts. Being psychics, these ghosts could easily read his mind and detect his malevolent intentions, and thus refused to teach Dan how to perfectly perform telekinesis. They never stood a chance. Despite having the psychic advantage, Phantom ruthlessly slaughtered many of them without breaking a sweat until finally the leader of the tribe agreed to teach Phantom if he ceased the massacre of his people. It took Phantom several weeks, but eventually he managed to master psychokinesis with relative ease. Seeing as the tribe were no longer of any use to him, Phantom disposed of them so that he was the only telekinetic master in the entire Ghost Zone. Now who would be test this newfound ability on? He had plethora of old rogues that he was eager to exact revenge on so who first? Skulker? Too easy. Ember? She could wait until later. Box Ghost? Not even worth the time or effort. Finally Phantom settled on his first victim: Walker.

Phantom always did wonder how tough Walker would we without his lackeys helping him and today he would find out. Walker had at least 1000 officers at his command, guarding both him and the prison. One would expect them to give Phantom a hard time. With his mastered new skill, Phantom absolutely wiped the floor with them, personally destroying each and every single member of Walker's police force until only the rogue law enforcer was left. Walker didn't seem the least bit worried. However, beneath Walker's stoic face was pure fury. Walker considered himself a father to his men and, having been killed in the line of duty when he was a human, was infuriated that someone would dare attack them. Unlike most, Walker instantly recognized who Phantom was, making the conflict even more personal. In Walker's eyes, Phantom was just the same little runt he had encountered and fought in the past, only now he was missing his human half and he had seriously pissed him off.

Phantom taunted Walker before the two fought, goading the law enforcer into attempting a close range attack. When Walker was mere centimeters from his face, Phantom telekinetically grabbed him out of the air and held him in place. Walker futilely scratched and clawed at Phantom, trying his hardest to land an attack. Phantom laughed and tossed Walker into the air before smashing him into the ground. The "fight" only lasted two minutes and consisted of Phantom using his psychokinesis to throw Walker around like a rag doll. Walker was completely helpless against Phantom's psychic assault and eventually was dispatched and disintegrated with haste when the latter got bored.

After killing Walker, Phantom destroyed his prison (and many of the inmates locked up within it) and set out to learn some more tricks. By sheer luck, Phantom encountered a ghost calling himself Amorpho, who had the power of shapeshifting into anyone or anything. Realizing just how useful an ability like that would be, Phantom requested that Amorpho show him how to do it. Just like the psionic tribe, Amorpho refused to teach Phantom how to shape shift. Phantom smirked, glad that he once again had a chance to show off his new power. It didn't matter what form Amorpho took, once Phantom had him in his grasp, it was only a matter of time before he was forced to relent. Once free, Amorpho tried making a mad dash for safety but Phantom once again telekinetically grabbed him and beat the crap out of him once again, warning Amorpho that he tried that stunt again, he wouldn't live to see another day.

Reluctantly, Amorpho taught Phantom how to shape shift and transform into anyone or anything. The first time Phantom tried changing forms, he ended up getting himself stuck in the form of a tiny ball of flesh that was almost completely immobile. With practice however, Phantom perfected yet another skill. Since he was in a good mood, Phantom decided to let Amorpho live, but not before giving him another beating just for kicks.

Phantom began his reign of destruction, terrorizing anyone that stepped in his way as well exacting some revenge on his former rogues gallery. He started with Technus, thrashing him so brutally simply to send a message to the entire Ghost Zone. Next on his hit list was Skulker, who he played with by allowing the hunter to attack him with all his weapons just so he could show that they had no effect on him before pulverizing the diminutive ghost. His next victim would be Ember, who he beat up so badly that her vocal cords were permanently damaged, rendering be unable to sing. One by one, all of Phantom's former enemies felt his wrath. Phantom meanwhile, grew more and more unhinged as he demolished his foes, taking a sadistic joy in inflicting so much pain and suffering. After a while, Phantom had almost completely lost whatever sanity he had remaining, becoming a spirit only focused on causing anguish. When Phantom returned to Earth, he only became worse. With no one capable of standing in his way, the world became his playground. Over the years, countless cities were reduced to rubble while even more lives were lost to this monster. Phantom kept his word and left Amity Park untouched while he decimated humanity. Several times, Phantom encountered a mysterious cloaked ghost calling himself Clockwork who attempted to put an end to his path of destruction. No matter what was thrown at him, Phantom seemed unstoppable. He regained a bit of his sanity, but it made little difference.

Phantom spent the years counting down to the moment he could return to Amity Park to finish what he had started. He anticipated the challenge that would (hopefully) await him as he had grown a bit bored with destroying everything in sight. When the day arrived, Phantom was ecstatic. It was finally time to return to the place where it all began.

**In The Next Chapter:**

_**You know I'll still be around even if you do absorb your other self, right?" **__**Dan**__** asked. "And even if you do succeed with fusing with this version of yourself, what's to say he won't interfere or try to take control of our body?"**_

_**"Because unlike you, he and I presumably share the same goals," Dan replied to his alternate self. "Do whatever we want, whenever we want, and kill whoever tries to stop us. Now will you shut up?"**_

_"__**And if he doesn't want to fuse with you?" **__**Dan**__** asked in response**__._

_**"His compliance isn't really an issue," Dan answered. "Thanks to the power I obtained by merging with you, I'll be more than powerful enough to merge with him whether he wants to or not**_,"

_"__**And why'd you kidnap Sam?" **__**Dan**__** asked. "I don't see how that fits in to your scheme**__,"_

"_**Oh come on, other self, you know the answer to that question," Dan replied. "After all, you are me, just from another timeline**_,"

_"__**But you were just trying to kill her along with her friends just a few minutes ago," **__**Dan**__** pointed out to him. "And now you're**__-"_

_**Dan cut him off and said "I admit I acted hasty back there, but with her potential I intend to keep her alive,"**_

_"__**Sure, that's the reason," **__**Dan**__** retorted sarcastically. "Or maybe absorbing me has caused my good nature to rub off on you,"**_

"_**Shut up!" Dan hissed. "I told you: I'm only keeping her around because of her fighting potential. Maybe just to twist the knife a little further into past self, I'll have her deliver the killing blow.**_

**Yeah, I decided to take a little break from the action to kind of set up a backstory for the next timeline. This is definitely a filler chapter (as you can probably tell by the heavy amount of exposition). **

**Peter: Yadonushi, this chapter's bad and you should feel bad!**

**Don't worry though, the next chapter will be out before you know it. Peace out and have a great day!**


	26. Kidnapped

**God Save The Queen Chapter 25: Kidnapped**

**Okay, so here's the second chapter I promised you this month to make up for not posting last month. Enjoy!**

Once again, Team Phantom found themselves separated from Dan. Only this time, they were missing Sam. Danny had no idea where Dan had taken her or even why had kidnapped her in the first place. Danny calmed himself down and focused on Tucker and Valerie, who were starting to stir. Tucker sat up and rubbed his aching head, switching out of his armored suit and stretching his sore limbs. Tucker's body was swollen and discolored in several places and covered in bruises. Valerie switched out of her battle armor and tried getting to her feet, but had problems putting weight on her leg for a few minutes before she finally managed to stand firmly on her own two feet. Valerie came out of the battle with a couple of first degree burns after Dan blew up her own rocket so close to her. She also suffered from a dislocated shoulder, but Valerie didn't let that slow her down and popped her shoulder back into place.

"Are you guys alright?" Danny asked them, offering the both of them a hand.

"I've definitely seen better days, but I'm used to this by now," Tucker said, grimacing slightly as Danny helped him to his feet.

"Same for me," Valerie said. "Moving on, where are we now?"

"I wish I knew," Danny said, looking around.

Danny couldn't tell if they were in a universe set in the past or the future. From the looks of things, they were in a timeline set in the future; it wasn't a very good future, but it wasn't a very bad one either. In fact, it seemed like a mix between previous timelines the gang had visited. Part of the city was undergoing repair while other parts seemed untouched. One thing that struck the trio as odd was that the streets were empty. There were no civilians walking on the sidewalk, no cars driving down the streets, the town just seemed abandoned.

"Hey, wait a minute, where's Sam?" Tucker asked.

"Dan took her," Danny explained. "Why? I have no idea,"

"Speaking of missing people, where is everyone else?" Valerie asked. "This place looks like a ghost town,"

"Do you think we're possibly in a timeline where Dan succeeded in wiping out humanity?" Tucker asked.

"There is a possibility," Danny replied before a bright golden light shined in his eyes, temporarily blinding. Looking up, Danny saw that the light had been reflected off of a golden statue of Valerie in her battle armor. "Hey, come look at this!" Danny said, leading his friends over to the statue.

"Looks like you've got quite the fanbase in this universe," Tucker joked, nudging Valerie with his elbow, accidentally hurting Valerie's injured arm.

Danny noticed there was a plaque engraved at the base of the statue. Wondering if he plaque would give him some type of answers, Danny read the plaque aloud.

"This statue is dedicated to the brave young woman who gave her life fighting off the ghostly creature that terrorized our town five years ago today. Although she failed to defeat the creature, her brave efforts impressed it enough that it promised to leave for ten years and give us time to raise another warrior capable of matching him in combat."

"Looks like you're a hero in this timeline," Tucker said to Valerie.

Danny looked at the date of Valerie's death engraved on the statue and then looked around to see if he could find anything the setting of this universe. A nearby newsstand quickly gave him the date.

"Looks like we're going to be getting a visit from this timeline's Dan as well," Danny said. "According to this newspaper, it's been ten years to the day since your (Valerie's) death,"

"I guess that explains why this town is empty; everyone must have fled when they got the chance," Valerie speculated. "Either that or they've resorted to hiding underground,"

"Wait a minute, we're going to have to contend with two mass murdering psychopathic ghosts at the same time now?" Tucker asked. "Didn't we just get our butts kicked by our own timeline's version? If Dan for some reason allies with this timeline's Dan or worse, fuses with him as well, we won't stand a chance,"

"Which is why we have to find Sam and steal Clockwork's staff back from Dan before he gets the chance to absorb another one of his counterparts," Danny said.

#################################

Meanwhile, Dan had took up a hiding spot in the basement of the former FentonWorks. Finally, it had seemed he'd given Team Phantom the slip. Now all he had to do was find his counterpart in this world, fuse with him and he'd be free to kill his past self without interference from that good hearted buffoon in his head.

_"You know I'll still be around even if you do absorb your other self, right?" __Dan__ asked. "And even if you do succeed with fusing with this version of yourself, what's to say he won't interfere or try to take control of our body?"_

"Because unlike you, he and I presumably share the same goals," Dan replied to his alternate self. "Do whatever we want, whenever we want, and kill whoever tries to stop us. Now will you shut up?"

_"And if he doesn't want to fuse with you?" __Dan__ asked in response._

"His compliance isn't really an issue," Dan answered. "Thanks to the power I obtained by merging with you, I'll be more than powerful enough to merge with him whether he wants to or not,"

_"And why'd you kidnap Sam?" __Dan__ asked. "I don't see how that fits in to your scheme,"_

"Oh come on, other self, you know the answer to that question," Dan replied. "After all, you are me, just from another timeline,"

_"But you were just trying to kill her along with her friends just a few minutes ago," __Dan__ pointed out to him. "And now you're-"_

Dan cut him off and said "I admit I acted hasty back there, but with her potential I intend to keep her alive,"

_"Sure, that's the reason," __Dan__ retorted sarcastically. "Or maybe absorbing me has caused my good nature to rub off on you,"_

"Shut up!" Dan hissed. "I told you: I'm only keeping her around because of her fighting potential. Maybe just to twist the knife a little further into past self, I'll have her deliver the killing blow."

_"Do you really think that's a good idea?" __Dan__ asked. "I don't mean to help you in anyway, but how could you possibly benefit from keeping her around? Other than you know,"_

"In my timeline, I was responsible for her death and it drove me so crazy that I tried killing her in my past self's timeline just to ensure my survival," Dan said. "I spent ten long years without being able to talk to her, without being able to see her. Now that she's a half ghost to, I won't have to be without her ever again,"

Dan wanted to antagonize his alternate self as much as possible and so he began taunting him. _"I don't get it though, isn't there a greater chance she'll get in the way of your plans, rather than aid them? I can't see any reason for you to… oh, I get it,"_

Dan wasn't in the mood for any of Dan's teasing and yelled at him "You shut your mouth or God so help me I will…"

_"You'll what?" __Dan__ asked, smirking inside Dan's head. "How are you going to shut me up, big guy?"_

"I can simply ignore you, you twit!" Dan replied.

_"We'll see how well that goes," __Dan__ said. "…"twit""_

Dan was about to retort when he heard Sam starting to stir. Ectoplasm bound her hands in front of her. She was still groggy from the previous fight with Dan and her vision was blurry. Still, she could see enough to make out her surroundings.

"I'd advise you not to move," Dan said. "Unless you want to put further strain on your already broken body,"

"You think this is broken," Sam retorted defiantly with a smirk. "My body's not even close to being broken. You're going to have to do a lot more if you want to even come close to breaking me!"

"Defiant, I always did like that about you," Dan said. "But being defiant might not be the best idea considering I can easily rip you apart piece by piece without breaking a sweat,"

_"But you won't!" __Dan__ chimed in, mocking Dan in a sing song voice causing Dan to internally groan and promise to find a way to shut him up._

"So why did you kidnap me?" Sam asked, curious as to why Dan had abducted her rather than kill her before remembering her friends. "What did you do to my friends?! Where are they?!"

"Calm down, Samantha…" Dan said before Sam surprised him with a sudden punch in between the eyes. _"Oh, that's right; she hates being called by her full name," __Dan__ reminded Dan. "You're going to have to remember that in the future,"_. Dan grunted and continued "As I was saying, those insects are still alive. Battered and bloodied, but alive. Unfortunately for them, they're stuck in the previous timeline with no way of escaping… meaning they're going to escape and catch up to us eventually,"

"But why did you kidnap me?" Sam asked. "Wouldn't I pose the risk of interfering in whatever plans you have? Even if I can't defeat you, I could still slow you down,"

_"See? I so fucking told you!" __Dan__ yelled._

Dan ignored him (or at least tried to) and answered "You slow me down? Don't make me laugh! If you posed even an iota of a threat to my plans, I wouldn't waste time abducting you, I'd just kill you!"

_"Would not!" __Dan__ said _causing Dan to retort "Don't make me come in there!" to which Dan laughed and replied _"I'd like to see you try,"_.

"Rest assured, my dear, I have my own reasons for abducting you," Dan said to Sam, grabbing her by her chin and turning her head so that he was looking her straight in the eye. "Don't you worry because I've got plans for you,"

Dan laughed triumphantly but stopped when he felt a huge source of energy in the distance. He wasn't the only one who picked up on the energy as Sam felt the huge surge of power as well. As did Team Phantom, who were still continuing their search for Dan.

"Uh Danny, do you feel that?" Tucker asked nervously, hoping his mind was just playing tricks on him and that the huge power source he felt was only his imagination.

Danny nodded and said "Thing is though, I don't think that power came from the Dan we're chasing,"

"Is as afraid you were going to say that," Tucker said.

"Sam, you sit tight right there," Dan said as he turned to go meet his doppelgänger. "I've got to go meet a new friend." With that, Dan departed laughing evilly.

########################################

"It's so good to be back home," said a tall intimidating figure with guttural, raspy voice as he floated over his old stomping grounds. "It seems they've managed to rebuild rather nicely; shame I've got to reduce it to a pile of ashes." The figure continued "I've spent years scouring the ghost zone, growing stronger and discovering new techniques. I don't know who they've trained to go up against me, but whoever for their sakes, I hope whoever they chose can at least keep me entertained for a couple of minutes,".

"Well if you're looking for a challenge, I can fill the part," Danny said, confronting the figure. He could immediately tell that the figure was this universe's version of Dan, but there were some differences in appearance with this Dan. His "hair" was much longer, wilder, and unkempt. Much like the main timeline Dan, this Dan had the glowing red irises, but had pitch black sclera that only served to make him look more manic and unhinged. His mouth consisted of razor sharp fangs that glistened ominously when he smiled evilly and his hands had long sharp claw like fingernails.

"Am I seeing things?" Dan asked with only dull surprise. "I suppose I should have seen this coming, that fool Clockwork is always interfering in my business. It was only a matter of time before he sent my past self forward in time to stop me."

"Don't underestimate me" Danny warned the manic Dan. "I've faced other versions of you before, one of which you're not even half as powerful as, I doubt you could last five minutes against me?"

Danny's words intrigued the other Dan, who began wondering about other versions of himself. Maybe he should pay them a visit, see what kind of challenges they provided. Dan shook the thought out of his head and kept his focus solely on Danny and his friends, prepping for battle.

"You say you can beat me in five minutes?" Dan challenged. "Well come on then. Your friends can even jump in and you can all take a stab at immortality. I must warn you though, I'll be stabbing at something too."

**In The Next Chapter: **

_**Dan got tired of strangling Danny as the continued use of his psychic powers took a toll on his stamina. Pausing for just a second to recuperate, Dan dropped Danny to the ground, walked over and kicked the younger boy in the ribs. Danny responded by shooting Dan with a ghost Ray and then unleashing a hail storm of razor sharp icicles on Dan. The older ghost held up his forearms while simultaneously trying to dodge the icy attack. The ice attack was only a distraction to give Danny the opportunity to nail Dan in the back of the head with a kick. Danny formed another icicle in his hands and attempted to plunge it into the middle of Dan's chest. Dan just barely managed to move enough for the icicle to stab into the left side of his chest. Dan hissed in pain for a second before retaliating by backhanding Danny. Dan forcefully rips the icicle from his chest, allowing green ectoplasm to run down his chest. Dan only let out a slight grunt before hurling Danny's icicle at him like a spear. Danny avoided being impaled through the head by the attack and blasted Dan in the face. Dan didn't show any signs of the blast affecting him and in fact fired a blast of his own at Danny. When Danny dodged, Dan slammed into him with all of his might, knocking Danny into the ground. Dan then seemingly disappeared, leaving Danny confused when he got to his feet. A dark shadow was suddenly cast over Danny, who looked up to see Dan telekinetically tossing a steam roller at him.**_

_**"Where the heck did he get a steam roller from?" Danny thought to himself as he raised his hands to hold back the steam roller and keep it from crushing him.**_

_**"ROAD ROLLA DA!" Dan screamed, laughing maniacally. "THREE MINUTES HAVE PASSED! I DON'T THINK YOU'LL SURVIVE ANOTHER TWO HOWEVER**_!"

**Hello Everybody, how's your day going? Mine's not going so well, but I'm trying my best to get through it. I apologize for the cheesy line at the end. I couldn't come up with anything better. Now we meet another version of Dan, although this one will be more unhinged and unstable than even the main timeline Dan. Spoiler alert: He won't last too long. Author's Note: The original title of this chapter was going to be **_**In the Arms of a Devil, **_**but I decided to change it at the last minute since I didn't think it really fit together with the content. **


	27. The Five Minute Waltz

**God Save The Queen Chapter 26: The Five Minute Waltz**

"You guys sit this one out," Danny advised Tucker and Valerie. "I can handle this guy by myself,"

"Those are quite bold statements you've made, past self," Manic Dan said. "Threatening to beat me in five minutes. Allow me to demonstrate why that won't happen,"

Danny was suddenly struck in the back of the head by a piece of rubble. Danny barely had time to react and subsequently only narrowly managed to avoid being impaled by an umbrella from a hot dog cart. Dan took advantage of a confused Danny by kneeing him in the chin and then grabbing Danny by his right arm and slamming his elbow into the side of Danny's head three times. Dan held onto Danny's arm and unleashed a series of kicks to Danny's chest, knocking the wind out of the hero and aggravating his already moderately injured ribs. Danny managed to pull his arm away from Dan and tried punching him in the face, only to for his fist to be stopped dead in its tracks just inches from Dan's face. Dan smiled an arrogant grin as Danny tried punching him again only to be prevented once again by some force. Danny was then catapulted backwards several meters by the same force.

"I bet you're wondering why your punches had no effect on me (twenty seconds)," Dan said, following after Danny and driving his elbow into Danny's stomach upon catching up to him, taking a moment to tell Danny just how much time had passed. "Like I said, after nearly being defeated by Valerie, rather than spending the last ten years destroying everything, I decided to discover new techniques and perfect my own abilities, acquiring more skills. Skills such as telekinesis,"

Dan explained all of this as he kicked Danny in the back of the head. Danny nimbly managed to move out of Dan's line of sight, appearing behind the mad Spectre and delivering multiple rapid fire punches to the back of Dan's head to disorient him and temporarily disrupt his telekinesis. This did little to slow Dan down however as he rammed his elbow into Danny's jaw, stunning the latter and allowing Dan to create a little bit of distance. With his head still spinning, Dan was unable to concentrate enough to use his telekinesis, leaving him vulnerable to a kick to the face by Danny. Danny then began hammering Dan with lefts and rights, keeping him off guard and leaving him dazed and confused. Danny tried finishing the assault with one last big punch to the face, but Dan instead caught his hand and scorched his hand by igniting his own hand. Danny yelped in pain and tried pulling his fist away, but Dan held tight and continued to burn Danny. Finally Danny managed to land one punch to the side of Dan's head that, although having no effect on Dan, did get the him to release Danny. Danny hissed in pain, gripping his injured hand tightly. There were dark scorch marks all over his fist from Dan's attack.

"Come on, let's go!" Valerie said to Tucker while Dan was too distracted fighting to notice the two of them.

"Go where?" Tucker asked, confused.

"Knowing our Dan, it's not going to take long before he arrives," Valerie explained. "This is our chance to find Sam while both Dans are preoccupied,"

"But what if we run into our Dan while looking for Sam?" Tucker asked before pointing out. "Besides, we don't even know where Dan could've taken her. It could take forever to find her"

"Seeing as how Dan loves revisiting the scene of his old atrocities," Valerie remembered as she and Tucker sneaked away while the two Phantoms were fighting. "So he might just be hiding out at the place of his birth: The Nasty Burger,"

Back to the fight between Danny and Dan, Dan used his "claws" to swipe at Danny, who dodged. Dan continued swiping wildly at Danny, laughing maniacally while doing so. Danny was just a bit too slow dodging one swipe and as a result, suffered a rather nasty slash on his left shoulder. He hissed in pain, but nonetheless continued fighting, grabbing Dan's arm and redirecting Dan's own attack back at him. Dan just barely avoided being eviscerated with his own claws and tried stabbing Danny through the eyes, but Danny was quick enough to counterattack with by shooting eye beams, burning Dan's hand this time and returning the favor from earlier. Dan growled and kicked Danny as hard as he could in the chest before following up by putting all of his strength into a single punch to Danny's face.

"Megaton Punch!" Dan yelled as Danny was propelled backwards several meters, alluding to the over the top nature of the ongoing battle. "One minute has passed! Four minutes remaining!"

Danny corrected himself and raised his forearms in front of his face to block another punch from Dan. The punch nearly broke Danny's arm as Danny kicked Dan under the chin. Dan hissed and charged at Danny with his claws once again. Danny countered by using his cryokinetic abilities to create razor sharp claws of his own made of ice. The two engaged in a fight with their claws clashing as the two tried dealing fatal blows to each other. Both sustained a few gashes but weren't even slightly slowed down. Danny just barely managed to move his head in time to avoid having one of his eyes gouged out. Dan then took Danny by surprise by creating a blinding ectoball and throwing it at him. The energy ball exploded meters away from Danny but did blind him, allowing Phantom to get away briefly. After regaining his vision, Danny spotted a shadow standing a few meters away. His vision still hazy, Danny assumed it was Dan and lunged to attack him before he heard a familiar voice.

"Hey Danny," Danny heard Sam's voice. Danny stopped dead in his tracks when he saw that the shadow belonged to Sam.

"Sam?" Danny asked, only to be sucker punched and sent flying back several meters.

"What an idiot!" Phantom laughed, revealing his trick and shapeshifting back into his true form.. "I can't believe you honestly fell for that!". Phantom attempted to take advantage of Danny's confusion by shooting a volley of blasts at Danny, who was prepared and deflected them blasts with ease.

Danny was so busy trying to deflect Dan's attacks that he forgot about the latter's telekinesis. That came back to bite him when Dan gave him a reminder via street lamp across the back of the head. With Danny groggy, Dan smashed him over the head with the street lamp again before wrapping it around Danny to restrain him. Dan then started constricting the street lamp with the intent of slowly crushing Danny to death with it. The more Danny struggled, the more pressure Dan applied. Thinking quickly, Danny used a ghost ray to burn through the metal and free himself. Dan cursed and ambushed Danny, kicking him in the head before telekinetically strangling Danny, who could only helplessly flail about.

"You were right about one thing, past self!" Dan yelled. "This conflict will take less than five minutes to resolve!"

####################################################

It didn't take long for Tucker and Valerie to arrive at the Nasty Burger, which seemed almost untouched by time. There was nothing left of the building but charred remains and broken glass. What was left of the Nasty Burger looked like it could collapse from merely a slight gust of wind. Jagged pieces of wood protruded from the floor and walls alongside several rusty nails. The place was crawling with roaches, rats, and several other rodents crawling along the floor, disgusting our two heroes.

"Are you sure Dan would bring Sam here?" Tucker asked, ignoring the urge to gag from disgust. "I mean, I think he could've chosen somewhere cleaner than here,"

"It doesn't hurt to look," Valerie said before yelling out Sam's name. "Sam! Are you here? Can you hear us?!"

"I hope we can find her, and quickly," Tucker said, searching through every room in the abandoned restaurant, but finding no trace of the Ghost Queen. "The sooner we can get out of this dump, the better,"

Turning around, Tucker accidentally bumped into one of the walls holding up the building. The ruins of the Nasty Burger began to shake as it became apparent the building was about implode.

"I think we might want to get out of here!" Tucker said, grabbing Valerie by her hand and quickly escorting her out of the building just in time. The two escaped not a minute too soon as the building collapsed almost immediately afterwards. Dusting himself off, Tucker said "Okay, something tells me Sam wasn't in there"

"So if Dan wasn't hiding there, where is he hiding?" Valerie asked.

"I don't know, if he's not at the place where this all started, then where could he-" Tucker asked before having a realization. "I know where Sam is!" Tucker said before suiting up and jumping into his hover board. "Come on, follow me!".

#######################################

"Good lord, you take an eternity to choke," Dan said, still strangling Danny. "By the way, two minutes have passed,"

Dan got tired of strangling Danny as the continued use of his psychic powers took a toll on his stamina. Pausing for just a second to recuperate, Dan dropped Danny to the ground, walked over and kicked the younger boy in the ribs. Danny responded by shooting Dan with a ghost Ray and then unleashing a hail storm of razor sharp icicles on Dan. The older ghost held up his forearms while simultaneously trying to dodge the icy attack. The ice attack was only a distraction to give Danny the opportunity to nail Dan in the back of the head with a kick. Danny formed another icicle in his hands and attempted to plunge it into the middle of Dan's chest. Dan just barely managed to move enough for the icicle to stab into the left side of his chest. Dan hissed in pain for a second before retaliating by backhanding Danny. Dan forcefully rips the icicle from his chest, allowing green ectoplasm to run down his chest. Dan only let out a slight grunt before hurling Danny's icicle at him like a spear. Danny avoided being impaled through the head by the attack and blasted Dan in the face. Dan didn't show any signs of the blast affecting him and in fact fired a blast of his own at Danny. When Danny dodged, Dan slammed into him with all of his might, knocking Danny into the ground. Dan then seemingly disappeared, leaving Danny confused when he got to his feet. A dark shadow was suddenly cast over Danny, who looked up to see Dan telekinetically tossing a steam roller at him.

"Where the heck did he get a steam roller from?" Danny thought to himself as he raised his hands to hold back the steam roller and keep it from crushing him.

"ROAD ROLLA DA!" Dan screamed, laughing maniacally. "THREE MINUTES HAVE PASSED! I DON'T THINK YOU'LL SURVIVE ANOTHER TWO HOWEVER!"

The steam roller collided hard with Danny, who just barely managed to stay on his feet. Danny pushed harder as Danny struggled to hold it off. Dan continued laughing at Danny's feeble attempts to keep from getting crushed. With everything he had, Danny pushed the steam roller back, slowly but surely prevailing against Dan's telekinetic steam roller attack. Dan grew frustrated and floated down until he was standing on top of the steam roller.

"IT'S NO USE TRYING TO FIGHT BACK! ACCEPT YOUR FATE! MEGATON PUNCH!" Dan yelled, punching the steam roller in an attempt to drive it into Danny.

Dan punched the steam roller repeatedly, making it harder for Danny to put up any resistance. Danny was brought down to one knee, but continued pushing back against Dan. It did no good however and soon he was flat on his back, futilely pushing against the steam roller.

"I'LL CRUSH YOU UNTIL YOU'RE AS FLAT AS A PANCAKE!" Dan screamed before punching the steam roller one last time and seemingly crushing Danny beneath it. Convinced he had won, Dan immediately calmed down, but retained his sinister smile.

##################################

Tucker and Valerie stayed close to the ground to avoid possibly being spotted by Dan. Sure enough, the two caught a glimpse of Dan flying overhead and ducked into cover. Dan didn't even seem to notice them and continued on his way.

"My alternate self shouldn't be too far from here," Dan thought to himself. "In a few minutes, I'll be unstoppable,"

"_Yeah, good luck with that," Dan replied, trying his hardest to irritate Dan._

Immediately after Dan was out of sight, Tucker and Valerie continued. It didn't take long before Tucker reached their destination: the former FentonWorks. The FentonWorks building was in much better shape than the Nasty Burger. Aside from vegetation growing on the walls and a bit of graffiti, the building looked up to date. The two stepped inside and began looking for Sam. They managed to find her in the basement, bound and gagged, but unharmed. The two quickly freed Sam from her restraints.

"Thanks for the help," Sam said, rubbing her wrists before transforming into her ghost form. "Now let's go is we can help Danny before Dan has the chance to fuse with another version of himself,"

With that said, the three left to rejoin Danny in his fight with Dan.

##########################################

Dan smirked as he floated over to where the steam roller had left a huge crater in the ground from being pounded so furiously into the asphalt. Dan inspected the crater, trying to see if there was anything left of Danny. Much to his disappointment and confusion, he saw absolutely nothing. There should have been some form of residue left behind. A puddle of blood or ectoplasm, tiny bone fragments, crushed internal organs; something.

Frustrated, Dan lifted the steamroller off the ground to see what was underneath. To his astonishment, Danny had completely disappeared without a trace. While Dan was trying to figure out what had happened, Danny unexpectedly emerged from underneath the ground and nailed him with a sucker punch. Dan growled and staggered backwards a little bit, staring at his counterpart with nothing but complete hatred.

"How? How did you survive?!" Dan asked. "I saw that steamroller crush you! How did you managed to escape unscathed?!"

"I have the ability to become intangible, remember?" Danny taunted him, flashing his own smirk at Dan. "Now, how much time do we have left?"

"I don't know why you care since you won't survive my next attack," Dan stated confidently. "But if you must know, we still have a minute and a half,"

"Perfect," Danny replied. "That's more than enough time to finish you off!"

"We'll see about that!" Dan yelled before shooting a blast at Danny.

"Oh please, we both know you don't have enough energy left to defeat me, otherwise you would have used a more powerful attack than a standard blast," Danny said as he easily dodged Dan's blast and flew in front of Dan, punching the latter in the gut. "It's obvious that you expelled all of your stamina using your telekinesis, leaving you virtually defenseless."

Dan started laughing maniacally once again and exclaimed "I shouldn't be surprised; of course facing my past self would be the only way to get a decent fight! You should be honored, past self! You actually forced me to go all out! At least you'll die with that knowledge!"

Dan tried one last attack, charging at Danny with all the strength he could muster. Danny, of course, easily evaded his attack and kicked him into the air. Danny then proceeded to almost completely vaporize Dan with one very large blast, ending the fight at 4 minutes, 59 seconds. Semi Super Dan arrived just in time to see his counterpart be reduced to a puddle of ectoplasm and damn near went ballistic.

"No! Goddamn him!" Dan swore all while Dan was laughing his head off inside of him. "What the hell is he even doing here?! I could've sworn I left him and his friends abandoned in another universe!"

"_Looks like your plans just went up in smoke!" Dan laughed. "Just like our counterpart just did!"_

"Goddamnit all to Hell!" Dan roared, catching Danny's attention.

"Oops, did I just ruin your little plan?" Danny mocked him.

Dan regained his composure and responded "Do you really think you've ruined my plans? Did you forget that I have this?!" Dan then pulled out Clockwork's staff and said "I knew that you'd find a way to interfere with my plan at one point or another. As such, I had a plan B! I always have a plan B!"

Sam, Tucker, and Valerie arrived just in time to see Dan use Clockwork's staff to turn back time thirty seconds for everyone except himself, reviving Phantom in the process and putting himself in between the fight between Danny and Dan.

**In The Next Chapter:**

_**This time you won't get in the way of my plans," Dan said to a frozen in place Danny before floating over to the other Dan, who was trying to summon up a little bit of strength so he could keep fighting. The other Dan looked at his main timeline counterpart with utter confusion over the situation.**_

_**"And who the devil are you supposed to be?" Phantom asked. "If you're here, trying to stop me from having a bit of fun, then get in line. I'll deal with you after I pound that obnoxious brat into a pulp."**_

_**"Can't you tell that you and I are one and the same; we are merely separated by different timelines," Dan answered. "And on the contrary, I'm not here to stop you, I'm here to help you."**_

_**"I don't need your help," Phantom grunted, moving to push Dan aside.**_

_**"Oh really, because it looks to me like you were about to be vaporized," Dan remarked, causing Phantom to growl and shoot him a death glare. "He's right you know; you used your power too hastily without restraint and now it's coming back to haunt you, no pun intended. You can barely summon enough strength to stand,"**_

**If I didn't jump the shark with that Box Ghost miniarc, then I certainly did in this chapter. Cheesy dialogue coupled with gratuitous swearing, more pop culture references than something done by LittleKuriboh, Dan and Dan arguing like an old married couple, and an over the top fight in a story that already features more fight scenes than a Mortal Kombat game. I think I had way too much fun writing this chapter and things got away from me. Hopefully it doesn't get worse from here on out (and now that I've said that, it's almost certainly going to get worse). Before I go, I have good news and bad news. The good news is that I've completed the last chapter to this arc and at the moment I am nine chapters ahead. The bad news is I'm having a bit of trouble uploading these chapters to the site, but it's nothing I can't get around. The chapters still need to be proofread anyway, but it shouldn't be long before this storyline is completed. Anyways, I hoped you enjoyed this chapter! Peace out and have a good day!**


	28. No Fair Save Scumming

**God Save The Queen Chapter 27: No Fair Save Scumming**

Dan pulled out Clockwork's staff and used it to start turning back time for everyone but himself. Dan stopped time just before Danny was going to deliver the killing attack. Just to be sure there would be no interference, Dan froze time for everyone except himself and the other Dan.

"This time you won't get in the way of my plans," Dan said to a frozen in place Danny before floating over to the other Dan, who was trying to summon up a little bit of strength so he could keep fighting. The other Dan looked at his main timeline counterpart with utter confusion over the situation.

"And who the devil are you supposed to be?" Phantom asked. "If you're here trying to stop me from having a bit of fun, then get in line. I'll deal with you after I pound that obnoxious brat into a pulp."

"Can't you tell that you and I are one and the same; we are merely separated by different timelines," Dan answered. "And on the contrary, I'm not here to stop you, I'm here to help you."

"I don't need your help," Phantom grunted, moving to push Dan aside.

"Oh really, because it looks to me like you were about to be vaporized," Dan remarked, causing Phantom to growl and shoot him a death glare. "He's right you know; you used your power too hastily without restraint and now it's coming back to haunt you, no pun intended. You can barely summon enough strength to stand,"

Phantom sighed and reluctantly acknowledged that he was close to being defeated and said "And how exactly are you going to help me? I don't want this degenerating into a two on one affair!"

"It's simple," Dan stated. "All you need to do is merge with me,"

"What?! Are you crazy?!" Phantom asked. "Would could I possibly gain from fusing with you?"

"I know it sounds far fetched, but trust me, the power we'll both receive from fusing will be more than worth it," Dan tried convincing his alternate self.

"And what'll happen to me if I go along with your little scheme?" Phantom asked. "Will I become nothing more than a mere voice in your head?!"

_"Yes!" __Dan__ screamed from inside of Dan's head, even though Phantom couldn't possibly hear him._

"Not at all," Dan said. "You and I shall peacefully coexist as two parts of the same mind; and best of all, not only will our past self not stand a ghost of a chance against us, we'll be in control of time itself." Dan presented Clockwork's staff, just to give Phantom a little more incentive.

Phantom needed to be convinced no further and said "Well what're we waiting for? With our combined might, no one will be able to stop us!"

Dan smirked and lunged at Phantom, turning intangible at the last second so he could absorb Phantom into himself. Danny, still trapped in time, yet fully aware, could only watch in horror as the two horrors became one and the same. Dan's "hair" grew longer just like his counterpart, becoming an almost raging inferno atop his head. His size didn't change to any noticeable degree, but his pupils became a darker, but somehow colder shade of red. Dan's face seemed to have become sharper as if to reflect his power. Dan's skin was no longer the bright green the gang had grown accustomed to seeing but instead was now a pale, sick, deathly shade of green. Unlike last time when Dan was struggling to contain his newfound power, this time Dan was in full control of his strength. He unfroze time and then stared directly at Danny.

"All done," Dan said triumphantly. "And judging by your expression, so are you!" Before Dan could make his move, Danny's friends arrived to see the new and improved Dan.

"We're too late, aren't we?" Tucker asked Danny upon seeing the fusion.

"Not exactly," Danny explained. "Dan used Clockwork's staff to rewind and freeze time after I destroyed his counterpart before merging with him,"

"So what you're saying is that he cheated?" Tucker asked.

"Like a 14 year old on a test he didn't study for," Danny replied.

"And the gang's all here!" Dan stated triumphantly. "Just in _**time **_for your demise!"

"And we are screwed!" Tucker said, just barely managing to avoid being hit by a flying car.

"Everyone be careful and keep alert," Danny warned them, while turning intangible to evade another projectile. "After absorbing himself, Dan's now got telekinesis!"

Unlike last time, Team Phantom thought it would be a good idea to just stay out of Dan's way until they could figure out a way to at the very least slow him down. Figuring that it would be safer if they split up, the four fighters flew off in separate directions. Dan smiled and created three duplicates of himself to deal with Sam, Tucker, and Valerie while he went after Danny. As Danny attempted to create some distance so he could think, Dan cut him off and punched him in the face, sending him spiraling towards the ground. Danny managed to correct himself, but before he could even move, Dan kicked him in the small of his back. The blow nearly broke Danny's back. Danny's friends weren't having any better luck. Tucker looked back and saw one of Dan's duplicates gaining on him before suddenly disappearing. Tucker turned to face forward, only to run into a knee to the gut from said duplicate. Sam was just narrowly managing to avoid lightning fast punches from Dan before being caught off guard and tossed into the air by one of Dan's telekinetic attacks. Valerie, meanwhile, was trying (keyword being trying) to fight off the duplicate that was after her, but said duplicate moved too quickly for her to even lay a finger on. The duplicate dodged an attack before head butting Valerie, almost knocking her out. While the real Dan was chasing after Danny, a certain counterpart voiced his discomfort.

_"You lying motherfucker!" __Phantom __said. "You said I wouldn't be reduced to just a voice in your head!"_

"Yeah, I lied," Dan said casually. "You should've known better than to trust yourself,"

_"I tried to warn you," __Dan__ said to __Phantom__._

_"And who the hell is this clown?" __Phantom__ asked in irritation._

"Meet your soft hearted self," Dan said to Phantom. "The very reason I had to absorb you in the first place since he refused to let me kill our past self."

_"Why on earth would he do that?" __Phantom__ asked in confusion._

"Because he still has the hero syndrome of our main timeline past self," Dan replied, growing a little bit irritated. "Now will the two of you pipe down? As you can see I'm in the middle of something!"

_"Yeah, and what are we supposed to do?" __Dan__ asked. "It's not like there's a pool table or a deck of cards or a 70" plasma widescreen TV in here that we could watch?"_

"And you're not going to get a pool table, a card deck TV, now shut-" Dan started to say before getting nailed in the face by Danny's foot. The conversation with his other selves was starting to distract him, leaving him vulnerable to attacks from Danny. Dan just barely managed to catch Danny's leg as the latter went for another kick. "See what you've done! Thanks a lot!"

_"You're welcome!" __Dan__ replied._

_Phantom__ then said "What's the big deal? It's just one stupid kick; you can take one of past self's weak kicks with your power, can't you._

_"Since we've nothing else to do, what do you say we annoy Dan?" __Dan__ said to __Phantom__. __Phantom__ replied "Well since there's nothing else to do in here, I suppose that'll work,"_

"What do I have to do to get you two to close your mouths for one second?!" Dan said, swiping at Danny.

_"You could buy us a TV," __Dan__ said causing _Dan to reply "Yeah, I'll get right on that with all the money I don't have!"

_Phantom__ piped in saying "You could always just steal one!"_

The obnoxiousness of his other selves distracted Dan so much that he couldn't maintain his clones, giving Sam, Tucker, and Valerie a break from the action. Danny wasn't so lucky, but with the distractions provided by _Dan_ and _Phantom_, it allowed him to land a couple of hits and create some space. Dan was starting to get visibly annoyed by something, but Danny couldn't tell what it was. It didn't matter to Danny though as he punched Dan right between the eyes before kneeing him in the stomach before hitting him with an uppercut.

_"How could you not DODGE?!" __Phantom__ asked. "That punch was so slow that an 87 year old human could've avoided it! What's wrong with you?"_

"Maybe it has something to do with the fact that I have two annoying twits in my head" Dan said.

_"HA HA! WE'RE TORMENTING YOU!" __Dan__ and __Phantom__ said simultaneously, only pissing off Dan even more._

Dan tried his best to ignore them and fired a blast at Danny, whoa scrambled out of the way in just the nick of time. Dan punched Danny in the chest, knocking him down once again. Dan then turned his attention to Sam, flying over to her and grabbing her by her wrist.

"I thought I told you to stay put and wait for me to get back" Dan said. Sam didn't say a word and used her free hand to punch Dan in the face, causing the latter to laugh as he wiped ectoplasm from his mouth. "Always defiant, that's what I always liked about you."

"Get your hands off of her!" Danny screamed.

Dan saw Danny charging at him and quickly twisted Sam's arm behind her back while wrapping his arm around her throat, intending to use Sam as a hostage.

"Back down, past self," Dan warned. "Before I do something we'll both regret!"

_"You're bluffing!" __Dan__ said. "You don't have the balls to harm a hair on her head."_

"Quiet you!" Dan hissed internally before redirecting his attention to Danny. "So, are you going to back down or am I going to have to break Sam's neck?"

"Don't listen to him!" Sam shouted at Danny as she tried pulling out of Dan's grasp, but to no avail.

Danny, feeling he had no choice in the matter, reluctantly lowered his stance as Dan laughed.

"You're so weak!" Dan roared, still keeping a tight grip on Sam. "You should've taken a chance or at least try something rather than backing down. Now, I'm going to rip you apart piece by piece!"

Knowing that Danny wouldn't dare attack him while he had Sam held hostage, Dan tossed a slab on concrete at Danny's head. Danny barely managed to dodge, but Dan retaliated by raising spikes out of the ground in an attempt to skewer him. Again, Danny avoided the spikes, but still didn't dare trying to make an attack on his evil future self. Dan started using telekinesis to repeatedly slam Danny against a wall. Tucker tried to distract Dan so Valerie could sneak up on him and attack, but Dan managed to detect Valerie's attempt at a sneak attack and captured her with his psychic powers, pinning her down next to Danny. This left only Tucker, but he didn't stand a chance and ended up getting caught in Dan's telekinetic hold as well.

_"They are pathetic," __Phantom__ mused. "You literally didn't even have to lift a finger,"_

"Phantom, do me a favor and keep our soft hearted other self from interfering this time," Dan said to Phantom. "I want to make sure he can't stop me from killing these pests once and for all!"

_"With pleasure," __Phantom__ said as his consciousness clashed with __Dan's__ to prevent the latter from holding Dan back._

"And I'm going to need you to pay really close attention to this," Dan said to Sam before setting his sights on the trapped warriors. Sam struggled, trying to break out of Dan's grip to help her friends. Dan slammed Danny, Tucker, and Valerie against the ground, telekinetically holding them down. While the three were trapped, Dan sliced a building in half with two eye beams, with part of the building falling towards them. Time seemed to slow down for Sam, who could only watch as the debris fell on top of her friends, crushing them.

"No!" Sam screamed as Dan let go of her. Sam started punching Dan in the face repeatedly, tears of rage and grief streaming down her face.

_"Aw, this is adorable, she's mad that we killed her friends," __Phantom__ laughed before he started getting a little annoyed at Sam. "And now it's getting annoying."_

Dan grabbed both of Sam's fists, looked her in the eyes and said "So you lost your friends, big deal. They're just three out of hundreds of thousands of my victims! I could easily reunite the four of you, but instead I chose to spare your life. Be grateful that you're still alive."

Dan then electrocuted Sam to knock her out before opening another time portal. Now that his past self and friends were out of his hair, he was free to explore other timelines.

**In The Next Chapter:**

_**What the hell are you morons doing? Why can't you just keep your damn mouths shut?!" Dan internally yelled at his counterparts.**_

_**"Aw, are we embarrassing you in front of your crush?" **__**Dan**__** mocked him. "Come now, I'm sure she won't think any less of you just because you have voices in your head!"**_

_**"Will you shut up about that already?!" Dan snapped. "I told you I'm only keeping Samantha around because…"**_

_**"You want to force her to kill Danny, which you've already done," **__**Phantom**__** said. "So keeping her around at this point serves no purpose, meaning you should just kill her and get it over with already, you twit!" **__**Phantom**__** wasn't done talking though and continued "But I know you're not going to actually go through with that because you're letting your little infatuation with her cloud your judgement."**_

_**"Why do you two keep insisting that I have feelings for Sam when I keep telling you that I don't?!" Dan asked, feeling his sanity slowly slipping away.**_

_**"Well I might not speak for Psycho over there, but maybe it's because we're different versions of you," **__**Dan**__** answered. "Meaning that we probably share the same feelings and emotions which you no doubt took up when you fused with the two of us!"**_

_**"That actually explains a lot," Dan said. "You're right, maybe your soft good natured heart has rubbed off on me a little bit. Fusing with you was a huge mistake,"**_

_"__**For once, I actually agree with you," **__**Dan**__** said. **_

**And now things have just gone from bad to worse. Not only has Dan fused with another version of himself (one who's even crazier than he is), he's killed Danny, Tucker, and Valerie… or has he? I'm not going to spoil it, you'll have to stick around to find out our heroes' fates. Now without them standing in has way, there's no telling what Dan could do. Stay tuned to find out what happens in the next thrilling installment of God Save The Queen. I've been your gracious host Timothy D and as always have a great day!**


	29. A Timely Miracle

**God Save The Queen Chapter 28: Time Out**

Danny felt so powerless, only being able to watch as Dan held Sam tightly by her arm and neck. He wished there was something he could do but he didn't dare try launch an attack while Sam was in danger. If Danny felt powerless before, he was about to feel completely helpless as Dan trapped him using his telekinesis. Danny tried desperately to move, but his body felt like it weighed 10 tons. He saw Tucker try to come to his defense while Valerie attempted to attack Dan from behind. Their plan failed and it wasn't long before all three of them found themselves unable to move, almost completely paralyzed by Dan's psychokinesis. Dan slammed the three onto the ground and Danny heard and felt something metallic fall out of his pocket right next to him. It was a silver and green stopwatch that Danny instantly recognized as the Wacky Watch Clockwork had given him on his wedding day. Clockwork said that it could turn time forwards and backwards a total of 24 times, but Danny wondered if it could be used to stop time. There was only one way to find out, but Danny had to get his hands on the Wacky Watch first. Struggling with all his might, Danny reached out for the artifact just as Dan severed a building that was towering above them clean in half with one swift blast. The upper half of the building quickly crumbled away and debris began falling towards the three, giving Danny only a couple of seconds to grab the watch and try to stop time before they were crushed. The watch seemed just out of his reach, but Danny persisted. Finally, when the rubble was just centimeters away from crushing them, Danny managed to grab the watch and press the button on top of it, resulting in time stopping for everyone except himself.

Freezing time had the nifty effect of also neutralizing Dan's telekinetic hold on him, Tucker, and Valerie, allowing Danny to grab the two and move out of the way with plenty of time to spare. Danny looked over to Dan, who wore a malicious grin and was still holding Sam tightly. It appeared that Dan wasn't even aware that time had stopped. Danny decided to take the opportunity to try and get Sam away from Dan. Danny made his way towards Dan when time slowly began unfreezing itself. Not wanting Dan to notice that he had managed to escape what was certain death, Danny quickly turned invisible and scurried back over to Tucker and Valerie, grabbing them and turning invisible as time resumed.

"What?! We're alive, but how?!" Tucker asked in astonishment at their survival before Danny and Valerie shushed him so Dan wouldn't be alerted to their presence. Tucker did a double check, just to make sure he was in fact, still alive and that this wasn't some dying dream that he was having.

"Hmm, I guess the Wacky Watch can only stop time for 30 seconds," Danny thought to himself as he watched Dan briefly let go of Sam so he could walk over and survey the scene.

Danny watched as Sam angrily punched Dan in the face while grieving the supposed death of her friends. Dan grabbed both of Sam's fists, looked her in the eyes and said "So you lost your friends, big deal. They're just three out of hundreds of thousands of my victims! I could easily reunite the four of you, but instead I chose to spare your life. Be grateful that you're still alive."

Dan then electrocuted Sam to knock her out before opening another time portal. Remaining silent and invisible, Danny, Tucker, and Valerie followed Dan through the time portal and into the next time stream. As the three were traveling through time and space, Tucker still had questions on how they had managed to escape their imminent demise.

"Okay, now that we're out of the psycho's earshot; seriously, how did we manage to make it out of that situation with our lives in tact?" Tucker asked.

"Remember the Wacky Watch Clockwork gave me and Sam as a wedding present?" Danny asked in response.

"Yeah, what about it?" Tucker asked.

"Well I used it to freeze time just long enough to pull the three of us out of the way of the falling debris just before we could be crushed," Danny explained. "I would've used it to take the opportunity to take down Dan, but the watch can apparently only freeze time for about 30 seconds,"

"But how was it able to surpass the effects of Clockwork's staff?" Tucker asked. "You'd think that being a creation of The Master of Time, the staff, or anyone wielding it for that matter, would be immune to the effects of something like the Wacky Watch."

"I guess that's why Clockwork neglected to tell me about the time freezing ability and put a 30 second time limit on it," Danny speculated.

"So where do you think Dan is headed now?" Valerie asked. "Since he thinks we're dead, do you think he'll go back to the main timeline?"

"I don't know," Danny said. "That's a possibility, but he could also explore even more timelines before heading back home. After all, he did say he wanted to conquer all of time and space."

The three saw a bright light approaching, signifying that they were about to be spat out into yet another timeline. Danny wondered what was going on back home while he was busy chasing after his evil twin. Hopefully, things hadn't gotten out of hand back in Amity Park. As soon as this was over, Danny wanted to go home and take a nice long nap. After being spat out by the portal, Danny, Tucker, and Valerie found themselves in a bright neon pink Neo cyber city esque Amity Park.

"Looks like we got a Good Future for a change," Tucker observed, taking a minute to take a good look at the bright, illuminated city.

Unlike the last future they visited, this future was full of happy citizens enjoying day to day life without a care in the world. There was no feeling of desertion or fear, no ominous presence of omen of things to come. Knowing Dan however, the three teens knew they'd have to find him quickly before he destroyed yet another city. And wouldn't you know it, that's exactly what Dan was planning to do.

Dan was amazed at how many timelines, or at least the ones he had come upon, had preserved the decaying ruins of FentonWorks. You'd think the city would've torn the building down or at least cut the power to the place. Honestly, it was as if someone wanted Dan to destroy this city. Dan was testing out the ghost portal in the basement to see if it still worked and much to his surprise, it did. Sam had since come to and wanted answers as to why Dan had left her alive.

"So any particular reason you kidnapped me and let me live rather than killing me alongside my friends?" Sam asked.

_"Because he's in love with you!" __Dan__ shouted, only to annoy Dan, who tried his best to ignore him._

"Would you rather me have killed you?" Dan asked, looking Sam in the eye with a lustful grin on his face. "Trust me when I say, it's not too late me to reunite you with them,"

_"As if you had the guts to actually go through with it," __Dan__ retorted._

_"Seriously dude, I didn't forfeit my body to fuse with you just so you could get laid," __Phantom__ added. The maniac would've been pouting if he wasn't simply reduced to a mere voice in Dan's head._

Dan continued. "But honestly where's the fun in that? You don't have much experience with your ghost powers while I have a combined 30 years of experience. I could always show you the ropes,"

"Keep dreaming, I'd rather die than be your little slave," Sam replied.

_"Well, you heard her; let's get rid of a liability and kill her!" __Phantom__ urged Dan. "I'm telling you, she's only going be trouble for our plans"_

"Shut up, you pest! I know what I'm doing!" Dan retorted causing _Dan_ to respond _"I really don't think you do,"_

Dan redirected his attention to Sam. "You'd like that, wouldn't you, but guess what? You don't call the shots here!" Dan smiled that wicked, sadistic smile he was known for and continued. "You of all people should know that I'm a sadist. I don't like to just simply kill my prey, I like to toy with them." Dan grabbed Sam by her chin and forced her to look him in the eyes. "Rest assured, your time will come soon enough, my precious Samantha; but I'm going to have a little fun with you first,"

_"Freudian Slip," __Dan__ said, referring to Dan calling Sam "his precious Samantha" and intending to get a ton of milage out of Dan's tongue slip, if just to keep the killer ghost annoyed._

Sam herself had something to say about the mistake. "My precious Samantha?"

"Uh, be a dear (_DAMNIT!_) and forget I said that last part, would you?" Dan asked in a tone that almost sounded genuinely polite. "Getting back to the point, you'll be my apprentice whether you want to or not."

"Like hell I will!" Sam replied.

_"Not that I mean to help you in any way, but you do realize you're wasting time arguing with her, right?" __Dan__ asked, truly wondering if his evil counterpart could be such a detriment to his own plans. If so, that made his job so much easier._

"Wasting time with what?" Dan replied. "With past self is dead, we have all the time in the world. Time is on our side!" causing _Phantom to get in on the action and quip "You know making those puns is very time consuming."_

_"You're truly an idiot if you think past self is dead," __Dan__ said. "You of all people should know how resilient and resourceful past self can be, yet you assume he didn't manage to survive being crushed by all that rubble?"_

"I watched him die with my own two eyes, why wouldn't I think he's dead?" Dan retorted. "I am the one who killed him once and for all!"

_"Yet you didn't check for a body?" __Dan__ pointed out._

_"Will you two shut up! Even if Danny Phantom and his group of cheerleaders aren't dead, there's no way they can be anything close to a threat with out power now!" __Phantom__ said. "It's just a matter of time before time catches up to them and their hourglass runs out!" Phantom then let out a hearty laugh before adding "Assuming they're alive, that is."_

"Okay, both of you just shut up and let me continue with what I was doing!" Dan snapped, as the internal bickering was starting to give him a migraine. "If past self somehow did survive, we'll make sure to deal with him whenever we see him!"

Sam could only watch in confusion as Dan's eyes rapidly darted back and forth, as if he were having a conversation with someone. If she wasn't convinced Dan was batshit insane before, she certainly was now. Sam was taken by surprise when Dan suddenly screamed "SHUT UP ! SHUT UP! SHUT UP!". She was almost compelled to ask the homicidal ghost what was bothering him. Dan noticed the look on her face and said "Would you excuse me for a moment?" Before stepping out of the room.

"What the hell are you morons doing? Why can't you just keep your damn mouths shut for one minute?!" Dan internally yelled at his counterparts.

_"Aw, are we embarrassing you in front of your crush?" __Dan__ mocked him. "Come now, I'm sure she won't think any less of you just because you have voices in your head!"_

"Will you shut up about that already?!" Dan snapped. "I told you I'm only keeping Samantha around because…"

_"You want to force her to kill Danny, which you've already done, yada yada yada" __Phantom__ said. "So keeping her around at this point serves no purpose, meaning you should just kill her and get it over with already, you twit!" __Phantom__ wasn't done talking though and continued "But I know you're not going to actually go through with that because you're letting your little infatuation with her cloud your judgement. For someone who claims to be superior to past self due to not having silly emotions to get in his way, you sure don't act like it."_

"Since past self is already dead, at this point keeping Samantha alive serves another purpose," Dan replied. "This is just to further rub salt in the wound from beyond the grave by claiming his wife as my own. As petty as it may appear, kidnapping Samantha is still part of my revenge since I'm taking away everything from past self even when he's dead!"

_Dan__ and __Phantom__ fell silent for just a brief second before simultaneously declaring "We don't believe you", with Phantom adding "As plausible as your explanation may seem, I still think you're only keeping Samantha around due to some perverted crush you have on her."_

"Why do you two keep insisting that I have feelings for Sam when I keep telling you that I don't?!" Dan asked, feeling his sanity slowly slipping away from having to argue with his counterparts like children.

_"Well I might not speak for Psycho over there, but maybe it's because we're different versions of you and by extension past self," __Dan__ answered. "Meaning that we probably share the same feelings and emotions which you no doubt took up when you fused with the two of us!"_

"That actually explains a lot," Dan deadpanned. "You're right, perhaps your soft good natured heart has rubbed off on me a little bit. Fusing with you was a huge mistake,"

_"For once, I actually agree with you," __Dan__ said. _

"Maybe if I'm lucky, over time both you and the other me's consciousness will fade away," Dan said hopefully. "And with you two gone, I'll be free to rule over the multiverse in relative peace and with maybe a small shred of sanity in tact,"

_"You can only hope," __Phantom__ said, still a bit upset about being tricked into fusing with Dan in the first place, yet willing to go along for the ride if it meant causing mayhem, chaos and destruction._

While the three Dans were busy arguing, Sam was trying to think of a way to defeat Dan. She knew she didn't stand a chance fighting Dan physically, but maybe she could try and trick the maniacal phantom before using the opportunity to capture him again. That wouldn't work as with his new power, Dan could probably easily tear through the Fenton thermos like it was wet tissue. What she could do was play along with Dan's scheme until he made a mistake. And then it finally hit her as to why Dan had spared her life and how she could use that to her advantage. If she could convince Dan that she had joined him, maybe she could get him to let his guard down. That could give Sam an opportunity to swipe Clockwork's staff and use it to turn back time and revive her friends. The first step however, was getting Dan to trust her. When Dan re-entered the room, Sam muttered "Alright you win. I'll do what you say!", doing her best to sound like she had given up hope.

"Hmm, I'd like to believe that you've finally realized there's no way out of this situation and that it's futile for you to even try to fight back, but I know better than that," Dan said, not convinced and knowing that the goth halfa could be cunning. "What's the catch? What are you planning?"

"There's no catch," Sam said. "I'm just tired of fighting. I give up. You've already killed my friends and you're probably going to kill me family too. I just want to get this whole ordeal over with as quickly as possible."

"My, my," Dan said, grabbing Sam by her face and looking her in the eye once again. "One minute you're defiantly declaring how you'll fight me even if it means your death, stating you'd rather die and be reunited with your friends than serve me; and the next, you're finally realizing that you don't have a say in the matter and that's it's best to just do as I say." Dan chuckled and asked his captive "Has realizing the gravity of the situation really broken you to the point where you're willing to serve your husband's murderer?" Dan made sure to emphasis the last few words of his sentence, wanting to rub in that unfortunate fact just to see if he could break the girl's spirit even more.

Quickly jerking her head away and giving Dan the most vicious death glare she could, Sam mumbled in a low voice "I already said I'll do what you say! You don't have to constantly remind you of what you did." Dan seemed to be falling for her ploy hook, line, and sinker. All she had to do was keep up the act.

_"Don't you dare fall for it!" __Phantom__ warned._

"Trust me, I know better than to believe her so easily," Dan said to him before saying to Sam "Since you claim to have completely given up and that you'll swear fealty to me as well as be subservient to all of my demands, I'm going to put your newly declared loyalty to the test," Dan said as he undid the restraints around her wrists. Sam took a second to rub her slightly sore wrists, trying to prepare for whatever Dan had to throw at her. Dan turned around to face her again and said "Come with me, we're going to rock this little town inside out,"

**In The Next Chapter: **

_**Sam closed her eyes as she felt her lungs tightening. Sam futilely struggled, trying to pry Dan's hand from around her neck to no avail. She tried to summon every last scrap of strength she had to break herself free, but it was useless. Sam felt the air escaping her as her strength began disappearing. In one last desperate attempt at freeing herself, Sam aimed both of her hands and Dan's face and fired a large ecto blast in his face. Other than leaving a few burns on his face, the blast didn't effect Dan in the slightest. Sam coughed and gasped as she felt herself slipping into a world of darkness. Danny meanwhile was frozen in place as every vein in his body turned to ice.**_

_**"Make your decision quickly, past self," Dan advised Danny, relenting just a little bit.**_

_**"Alright, alright; we surrender!" Danny stated. "Just don't hurt Sam!"**_

_**"Idiotic past self, I knew you'd surrender," Dan gloated as he removed his hand from Sam's throat and trapped her unconscious form in an ecto shield bubble to prevent Danny from having any second thoughts. Both Danny and Dan glanced over at Sam for a brief moment to make sure she was still breathing. Both breathed a sigh of relief (although Dan made sure Danny, Tucker, and Valerie didn't see it) when they saw her chest rise and fall in the rhythm of breathing. "One of your greatest flaws, past self, is putting the lives of weaker beings before your own."**_

**The Master of the Short Story, Anton Chekhov once said "If you say in the first chapter that there is a rifle hanging on the wall, in the second or third chapter it absolutely must go off. If it's not going to be fired, it shouldn't be hanging there." In this case, the Chekhov's Gun is the Wacky Watch, which was mentioned all the way back in chapter 4. It may have taken 24 chapters for the device to become relevant to the plot, but it's better late than never I say. I'd like to give a special shoutout to dracologistmaster and Marines 94, who remembered about the wacky watch despite it being barely mentioned at all in previous chapters. Don't think the Wacky Watch is through just yet, it'll play another role in a future chapter. Stay tuned to find out what other role the Wacky Watch will play in the future. Anyways, I hope you guys enjoyed (and that the obvious padding didn't get in the way too much). Peace out and have a great day!**


	30. Love is Timeless

**God Save The Queen Chapter 29: Love is Timeless**

Danny, Tucker, and Valerie were continuing their search for Dan and Sam, wanting to stop Dan before he either killed Sam, destroyed the city, or both. They were having no such luck as the first place they looked was the abandoned FentonWorks building. There were signs that someone had been there, but by the time the trio arrived, whoever was there was long gone. Danny knew that Dan hadn't jumped to another timeline already. With Dan assuming them to be dead, he'd have no reason to jump to another timeline without causing even a little bit of trouble in this one. Even if he had jumped to another timeline, Danny wouldn't stop until he found his alternate self and saved his wife. Fortunately for the ghost fighters, they were about to catch a lucky break. While thinking of more places to look, the trio heard a loud boom and turned around to see an explosion in the distance.

"I think we've found him," Valerie said.

"Let's get this over with," Tucker sighed, dreading the beating they were sure to endure at Dan's hands.

Danny didn't need to be told twice and sped off in the direction of the explosion as fast as he could, leaving his friends in the dust.

"Hang on Sam," Danny thought, racing as fast as he could. "I'm coming!"

Dan was in the middle of blasting everything in sight, watching with sadistic glee as the civilians ran for cover. He wasn't going to kill them just yet; he wanted to take in the looks of fear and despair on their faces before ending their lives. It felt wonderful to know that there was nobody who could stop him now.

"Hey! What are you doing just floating there?" Dan yelled at Sam. "Give me a hand, baby girl!"

Sam hesitated and decided to stall for time, not wanting to attack the townspeople. "So I finally figured it out," she said

"Figured what out?" Dan asked.

"I've finally figured out why you let me live despite trying to kill me the first time we encountered each other," Sam said.

"Oh really?" Dan said with a smile. "And why is that? Please humor me,"

"You're Danny's alternate self, so it makes sense that just like the real Danny, you have a crush on me," Sam said. "Since you don't have to kill Danny's friends and family to ensure your own survival anymore, you're free to have me all to yourself. Especially now that I'm half ghost,"

Dan chuckled and said "It never mattered whether you were half ghost or not, right now I just want you to be mine,". Dan quickly changed the subject. "Enough talking however, let's get back to business and finish turning this city into a mass grave!"

Sam hesitated, not having the nerve necessary to attack innocent people. She wanted to keep up the charade long enough to gain Dan's trust, but not like this. Sam realized that she hadn't thought this plan through, but reluctantly charged up and fired a blast, taking out a nearby building. Sam made sure that no civilians would get caught in crossfire as she assisted Dan in destroying the cybernetic city. Dan created a huge sphere of energy in his hand, prepared to reduce Amity Park to smoldering ashes when Danny suddenly flew into his chest headfirst with all his might, a move that would've knocked the wind out of Dan's chest were he human.

"You?!" Dan asked in irritation before regaining his composure. "I suppose I shouldn't be surprised. We always did find a way out of certain death so it was sure to be only a matter of time before you came back. And if you're alive, I know that means Tucker and Valerie survived as well."

"I through playing games, Dan," Danny said. "This ends here and now,"

"I couldn't agree with you more," Dan said. "Samantha, take care of this little pest for me, will you?"

"What?!" Sam exclaimed, not willing to fight her husband, but still wanting to lull Dan into a false sense of security.

"Did I stutter? Fight him!" Dan ordered.

Sam nodded her head and attacked Danny, going at him with a flying kick. Danny moved to the left to avoid the attack and dodged a left handed punch to the face. Danny, naturally, was confused as he dodged another punch from Sam.

"What are you doing?" Danny asked, grabbing Sam by her wrist. "It's me, Danny,"

"I know that, but I'm trying to gain Dan's trust so we can find a way to stop him," Sam whispered. "Trust me, Dan's way too powerful for either of us to face at this point,"

"Tell me about it," Danny whispered back, playing along and allowing Sam to kick him in the gut. "Tucker, Valerie, and I just barely managed to survive our last encounter with Dan,"

"Speaking of which, how did you guys survive?" Sam asked. "I saw the building crush you,"

"I used the Wacky Watch that Clockwork gave us as a wedding gift to freeze time at literally the last second grabbing Tucker and Valerie and getting out of there," Danny explained as he dodged a forearm to the face from Sam and countered with an elbow to the side of the head. "The weird thing is that even with Clockwork's staff, Dan wasn't immune to the effects of the Wacky Watch and was frozen in time just like everybody else. I tried to save you, but the watch only stops time for 30 seconds so I didn't have time,"

"Well why don't we use it now to freeze time again so that we can destroy Dan once and for all?" Sam asked, hitting Danny with a kick to the chin.

"Because like you said, at this point, it's virtually impossible for us to take Dan out," Danny explained, catching another kick from Sam. "And I don't want to possibly waste 30 seconds"

"So what are we supposed to do?" Sam asked.

"Well first we've got to find a way to get Clockwork's staff away from him," Danny said. "Then we can come up with a plan,"

At just that moment, Tucker and Valerie finally caught up with Danny and were confused when they saw Danny and Sam fighting while Dan just watched.

"Uh guys, this really isn't the time for a sparring match," Tucker yelled, getting Dan's attention.

"And the cheerleaders have arrived," Dan said, smirking sinisterly as he prepared to launch an attack on the two hunters before Danny slipped away from Sam and intercepted Dan with an uppercut. "Why do you keep getting in my way?!"

"I told you Dan, I won't stop until I've put a stop to your plans," Danny said defiantly. "I'll fight you no matter how much the odds are against me!"

"Is that so?" Dan asked before suddenly charging at Sam and grabbing her by her throat. Dan held Sam in the air and began squeezing her neck, strangling her and causing Danny to stop dead in his tracks. "I wonder if you'd be so willing to fight me if Sam's life was in danger," Sam gasped and coughed, trying to draw air into her lungs as Dan gradually applied more pressure. "Sorry about this, Sam, but it's the only way to get that pest off my back,"

"Let her go, Dan!" Danny demanded.

"Oh, I'll let her go as soon as you back down," Dan said. "Don't make me do something we'll both regret! All of you surrender!". Tucker and Valerie immediately complied and stood down.

_"Now you're actually starting to use your brain," __Phantom__ said. "Forget about Sam, we've got this idiot at our mercy!"_

_"Think about this!" Dan argued, knowing how crazy his alternate self was and trying to talk him down before he killed Sam. "I know you don't want to kill Sam especially after all the trouble you went through to spare her life,"_

"Of course I don't want to kill Sam, you idiot!" Dan barked. "But I know past self like the back of my hand and there's no way he's going to put Sam's life at risk,"

Sam closed her eyes as she felt her lungs tightening. Sam futilely struggled, trying to pry Dan's hand from around her neck to no avail. She tried to summon every last scrap of strength she had to break herself free, but it was useless. Sam felt the air escaping her as her strength began disappearing. In one last desperate attempt at freeing herself, Sam aimed both of her hands and Dan's face and fired a large ecto blast in his face. Other than leaving a few burns on his face, the blast didn't effect Dan in the slightest. Sam coughed and gasped as she felt herself slipping into a world of darkness. Danny meanwhile was frozen in place as every vein in his body turned to ice.

"Make your decision quickly, past self," Dan advised Danny, relenting just a little bit.

"Alright, alright; we surrender!" Danny stated. "Just don't hurt Sam!"

"Idiotic past self, I knew you'd surrender," Dan gloated as he removed his hand from Sam's throat and trapped her unconscious form in an ecto shield bubble to prevent Danny from having any second thoughts. Both Danny and Dan glanced over at Sam for a brief moment to make sure she was still breathing. Both breathed a sigh of relief (although Dan made sure Danny, Tucker, and Valerie didn't see it) when they saw her chest rise and fall in the rhythm of breathing. "One of your greatest flaws, past self, is putting the lives of weaker beings before your own." Dan flew over and kneed Danny in the gut, the resulting blow causing Danny to gasp for air.

_"Now's your chance to finish him off!" __Phantom__ said. "Don't go with the theatrical James Bond villains shit, just shoot a blast through his heart or brain or better yet, simply vaporize him and he'll be out of our way forever,"_

Before Dan could make his move however, Valerie caught him off guard by suddenly slashing him across the stomach with her sword. Dan hissed in pain and jumped back before firing a blast at Valerie in frustration, who had to move very quickly to avoid being hit. Rather than getting angry and losing his temper, Dan simply took a deep breath before catching Valerie when she tried to attack him with the sword once again.

"You guys never seem to learn, do you?" Dan asked calmly as he flicked Valerie in the chest with his finger, sending her flying back several meters. "Don't need to answer that,"

_"We have got to have the worst luck," __Phantom__ said. "Every time we get close to killing him, someone gets in the way!"_

_"Maybe you two morons should just take a hint and give up already," __Dan__ said. "It should be clear to you that no matter how hard you try, you're never going to be able to kill Danny Phantom. You yourself admitted that you knew he survived our previous attempt at killing him because of his willpower, so why do you keep trying?"_

"Isn't it obvious," Dan replied. "For every world that he supposedly saves by stopping us, the more damage he's unintentionally doing to the multiverse and the resulting chaos makes it much easier for me to take over time and space,"

_"Hmm, that's actually a pretty good idea," __Phantom__ said. "and here I thought you were just keeping a death grip on the Villain Ball like a runner back going for the game winning touchdown,"_

_"Bullshit! I think you're just saying that to save face after your numerous failures at killing Danny and friends," __Dan__ retorted. "In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if your plan fell apart any second now,"_

"You're free to think whatever you want, there's nothing you or those losers can do to stop me," Dan gloated before things took a turn for the worse. A long, strong green vine suddenly lashed out and ripped Clockwork's staff out of Dan's hands. Dan's eyes widened in surprise as looked over to see Sam holding the staff in her hands.

_"Right on cue!" __Dan__ quipped, mocking Dan. "Your defeat is now more imminent than ever before. Oh, or is this all part of your master plan too?"_

Realizing his plan was falling apart before his very eyes, Dan could only mutter one word. "Oh…"

_"Shit!" __Phantom__ finished for him while __Dan__ laughed maniacally at their reactions._

**In The Next Chapter: **

_**Unfortunately, it appeared as if they didn't have much time as the vines surrounding the barrier began slowly disintegrating and falling apart, tearing away the outer barrier. On the other side of the struggle Dan was starting to exhaust himself and couldn't keep his ghostly wail going for much longer. Dan silently cursed as everything seemed to be slipping apart. Little did he know that his younger counterpart was doing the same thing as the shield slowly started crumbling away.**_

_**"C'mon, I just need you to last a little bit longer," both Danny and Dan thought to themselves as they struggled to hold up.**_

_"__**You see, that's what you get for not listening and being theatrical rather killing them when you had the chance," **__**Phantom**__** chastised Dan.**_

_**"Oh, like you're one to talk seeing as you got yourself killed by the little pest, requiring me to turn back time to save your sorry ass!" Dan hissed back as ectoplasm dripped from his forehead. "Shit, I can't keep this up much longer**__," _

_**"You really need to learn how to conserve energy," **__**Dan**__** said. "Although then again, if you held on to too much of your energy, it would tear you apart from the inside out. A lose-lose situation for you. I bet you regret eating us now, don't you?"**_

_**"Darn it! This shield isn't going to hold out much longer!"**__**Danny noted, preparing for the shield bubble be destroyed. "Hold on tight, I can't keep the shield up much longer!"**_

_**Sure enough, a few seconds later, Danny's shield and Sam's vines exploded, leaving Team Phantom completely vulnerable. Or at least, they would've been completely vulnerable had Dan not run out of the stamina necessary to keep up the Ghostly Wail at that exact same moment. Dan was floating kneeled over and panting heavily as ectoplasmic sweat dripped down his forehead**_.

**Well, business certainly picked up in this chapter. There's only a few more chapters to go before we wrap this thing up so stay tuned. Peace out and have a great day! If this chapter goes up before July 22, then the next update will be on that date. If it doesn't then that means that you're most likely reading this chapter on the 22nd, which is my birthday. It's a little tradition of mine to update on my birthday, but I digress. Peace out and have a great day!**


	31. Hot Potato

**God Save The Queen Chapter 30: Hot Potato**

Time seemed to freeze for Dan as he saw his plans starting to unravel before his very eyes and he couldn't do anything about it. Dan his best not to panic and reminded himself that even if Sam did have the staff, neither she or Danny knew how to use it. Even if they did, Dan was still more than powerful and quick enough to take it back by force.

"Sam, dear, could you please give that back?" Dan asked in a faux polite tone. "I kind of need it right now."

_"Yeah right, like she's going to hand it back over to you after you just nearly strangled her to death," __Dan__ quipped._

"That was merely to get Danny to lower his guard," Dan argued. "And besides, I didn't actually kill her,". _Dan__ replied "So what? Do you want a reward for basic decency?"_

"There's no way I'm giving this back to you after you tried to kill my friends and just tried to strangle me to death!" Sam stated angrily, stepping backwards as Dan slowly advanced towards her. Dan chuckled and said "I'll give you one last chance to give me back Clockwork's staff before I take it from you,". Sam stood her ground against the psychopath, refusing to hand over the staff so easily. "Very well then," Dan said in an eerily calm voice. "Just don't say I didn't warn you,"

Danny tried to dropkick Dan right in the face while the latter wasn't paying attention. Unfortunately, Dan had quick reaction time and caught Danny by his legs.

"You know, you can only pull off a sneak attack so many times before it starts to become predictable," Dan said, taking a moment to yawn before tossing Danny across the sky. Dan returned his attention to Sam. "Now where were we? Oh, that's right, I was about to take back what was mine!"

"I'd love to give this back to you," Sam said before quickly tossing the staff to Tucker. "Only problem is I don't have it,"

"Why'd you throw it to me?!" Tucker screamed as Dan charged towards him, he and Valerie both going their separate ways. With Dan's speed, it didn't take long for him to catch up to Tucker, who responded by throwing the staff at Valerie, who caught it and took off on her hover board.

"What is this?!" Dan asked in irritation as he changed course and headed for Valerie. "Are we a group of children playing a game of keep away?!"

Danny intercepted Dan split second before he would've caught up with Valerie, slamming into the Phantom with all his might using his shoulder. Dan was briefly stunned and Danny took the opportunity to take the staff from Valerie and made a break for it. Dan was quickly on his tail, desperate to regain possession of the staff. Dan expected Danny to turn around and toss the staff to one of his friends and was prepared to intercept the pass. Much to Dan's surprise however, Danny turned around and struck him in the face with the staff. Hitting Dan with the staff had the side effect of opening up a small time rift that quickly closed after a few seconds. Dan was quick to reprimand Danny for his impulsive decision.

"Be careful, you idiot!" Dan scolded Danny. "Clockwork's staff is very sensitive and in the wrong hands, could easily destroy time itself and by extension, us!"

"Well I guess that's one more reason not to hand this back over to you," Danny said.

_"Uh, you do remember that we have telekinesis, right?" __Phantom__ reminded Dan. "We can just take the staff back using our mind,"_

Dan, heeding _Phantom's_ advice, used his psychokinesis to grab the staff, but Danny held on tight. Dan tugged at the staff, trying to get Danny to lose his grip, but Danny refused to lose go easily. It took almost all of the strength in Danny's body to resist Dan's psychic pull. Finally though, Danny could hold on no longer as Dan won the tug of war for the staff. Dan smiled as he reached out to grab the scepter, only for it to be suddenly yanked out of his reach by Sam's vines. Dan snarled and again used his psychokinesis to get a hold of Clockwork's staff. The only difference was that Sam's vines were strong enough to withstand Dan's pull for a few minutes while Dan exerted energy by using his psychic powers. While Dan was concentrated on pulling the staff away from Sam's vines, Danny blasted him in the side of the head with an ectoblast, breaking the psychopathic specter's concentration. Sam grabbed the staff and attempted to use it herself to stop time, but couldn't manage to pull it off.

"Ha! Did you actually think that you could handle Clockwork's staff?" Dan laughed at her. "The only reason I know how to use the damn thing is because I spent two years trapped in that wretched thermos, observing Clockwork in action," Dan stepped towards Sam to reclaim the staff from her, smiling maliciously. "Now be a good girl and give Daddy his staff back,"

Sam refused to give up, remaining persistent in her attempts to use the artifact. Her persistency paid off, but not in the way she expected, as she managed to fire a small blast from the staff that hit Dan right in the face and made him stagger backwards. Dan hissed in pain and shot Sam the most terrifying death glare imaginable and the current look on his face was downright murderous. Noticeably, his face appeared five years younger as if he had been de aged by the blast from the staff. Before Dan could make his move, Sam tossed the staff over to Danny, continuing the game of hot potato over possession of the artifact.

_"Okay, this has gone on far enough!" __Phantom__ snapped._

Dan nodded in agreement and took a deep breath, preparing to unleash his Ghostly Wail. Knowing that even if he wouldn't stand a chance of overpowering Dan's attack even if he countered with a Ghostly Wail of his own, Danny gathered his friends together and formed a shield bubble around them. Sam assisted him in creating the shield by reinforcing it with a shield of her own and encasing the four of them in a mesh of thorny vines. The four friends crossed their fingers and hoped the barrier would hold up against the incoming attack as they braced for impact. Dan unleashed his attack with a fury, not holding back anything. It was apparent that the maniac was starting to snap and would do anything to get the staff back from Danny and the gang. The reinforced barrier bubble containing the teenagers shook and trembled violently, but nonetheless refused to give way to Dan's attack. The four didn't know how much longer the shield could hold up against the Ghostly Wail and if it would soon be destroyed by the force of the attack, but they hoped they wouldn't have to find out.

Unfortunately, it appeared as if they didn't have much time as the vines surrounding the barrier began slowly disintegrating and falling apart, tearing away the outer barrier. On the other side of the struggle Dan was starting to exhaust himself and couldn't keep his ghostly wail going for much longer. Dan silently cursed as everything seemed to be slipping apart. Little did he know that his younger counterpart was doing the same thing as the shield slowly started crumbling away.

_"C'mon, I just need you to last a little bit longer," _both Danny and Dan thought to themselves as they struggled to hold up.

_"You see, that's what you get for not listening and being theatrical rather killing them when you had the chance," __Phantom__ chastised Dan._

_"Oh, like you're one to talk seeing as you got yourself killed by the little pest, requiring me to turn back time to save your sorry ass!" Dan hissed back as ectoplasm dripped from his forehead. "Shit, I can't keep this up much longer," _

_"You really need to learn how to conserve energy," __Dan__ said. "Although then again, if you held on to too much of your energy, it would tear you apart from the inside out. A lose-lose situation for you. I bet you regret eating us now, don't you?"_

_"Darn it! This shield isn't going to hold out much longer!" _Danny noted, preparing for the shield bubble be destroyed. "Hold on tight, I can't keep the shield up much longer!"

Sure enough, a few seconds later, Danny's shield and Sam's vines exploded, leaving Team Phantom completely vulnerable. Or at least, they would've been completely vulnerable had Dan not run out of the stamina necessary to keep up the Ghostly Wail at that exact same moment. Dan was floating kneeled over and panting heavily as ectoplasmic sweat dripped down his forehead. Undeterred, Dan still went on the attack, charging at Team Phantom with a vengeance. He had not come this far, this close to both getting his revenge and taking over possibly the entire multiverse just to lose at the last minute.

_"Ha! You're just like a student trying to finish the finals he didn't study for before the final bell lets out after the student he was cheating off of has left the class," __Dan__ noted, doing his best to get under Dan's skin._

"Quick, attack him now while he's tired!" Sam said before she and Danny attacked Dan with an ectoblast while Tucker and Valerie shot him with their cannons.

Dan let out a scream as all four attacks collided with him, draining him of a little bit more energy and admittedly slowing him down quite a bit. Dan took a moment to pause and catch his breath as well as try to remain calm. Even though Danny, Sam, Tucker, and Valerie could slow him down, there's no way they could actually defeat him. He'd let them hit him with their attacks while simultaneously recovering vital stamina and energy before wiping them out once and for all. Dan's only problem was that he needed to get the staff away from the team before they managed to figure out how to use it and undo everything he'd worked so hard to achieve.

_"You see, you wouldn't have this problem if you had just shot a blast through their hearts or simply vaporized them," __Dan__ continually rubbed in. "I'd honestly like to know why you made all of these stupid decisions? Did you honestly become so arrogant and assured of your victory that you deliberately spared one of them for the sole purpose of forcing her to kill her friends?"_

_"I wouldn't be so patronizing if I were you," _Dan said to him. _"If I die, then you two die with me"_

_"Quit arguing and get the staff back, you stupid idiot!" __Phantom__ ordered, becoming just as irritated as Dan with the arguing._

Danny, Sam, Tucker, and Valerie all split up in different directions once again. Danny was the one currently in possession of the staff but made sure to keep it concealed so that Dan would have no idea which one of them had it. While that admittedly was a problem for the homicidal phantom, it wasn't one that would slow him down very long. All he had to do was take down all four of them one by one until he found the staff and then finally take them out.

_"Why not just take them out as soon as you catch them?" __Phantom__ asked._

"Because any time I waste killing one of them, even a single solitary millisecond, gives them more time to figure out how to work the staff," Dan pointed out. "And if that happens, they can simply undo what I did anyway. It's faster to just take them out and move on to the next,"

Dan decided to go after Tucker first as he was the slowest and even though he was the least likely person to have the staff, it couldn't hurt to try. Dan appeared in front of the techno geek with in an instant and backhanded him, knocking him down. Upon seeing he didn't have the staff, Dan quickly moved on and this time chose correctly as he seemingly teleported in front of Danny and kneed him in the stomach, causing the Ghost King to drop the staff, which Dan quickly grabbed.

"You know, past self, you could've made this much easier on yourself if you and your friends had simply cooperated, rolled over and died," Dan said. "Although if I must be honest, it has been rather fun defeating you at every turn, even when you seemingly had the advantage; but I'm tired of playing this game and-"

Danny interrupted Dan's long winded victory speech and grabbed the staff once again, holding onto it for dear life.

"Damn it, why do I keep doing things like this?!" Dan asked himself. "I really am becoming a Villain Ball holding, Card Carrying Villain!"

_"Glad to see you finally realize that!" Both __Dan__ and __Phantom__ snarked._

Desperate, Danny tried yanking the staff back only for Dan to pull back as well. The force caused the staff to snap in half and everyone stopped dead in their tracks, realizing that something bad was about to happen.

"Oh no," everyone whispered before a bright white light engulfed all of them.

**In The Next Chapter:**

_**As soon as Clockwork's staff broke, all five combatants as well as Dan's absorbed counterparts knew that something bad was going to happen. Time seemed to freeze for a couple of seconds (and everyone hoped that that was the case and the worst case scenario) as nobody moved an inch. All of a sudden, Team Phantom and Dan found themselves nearly blinded and engulfed by a bright white light. When their vision returned and the light faded, the five found themselves traveling through what seemed like a wormhole at light speed, all while surrounded by portals leading to alternate timelines and universes. Period pieces from different points of history also appeared around them such as the Sphinx, Roman temples and coliseums, Triceratops skulls, Bodhisattva statues, the Titanic, the Hindenburg, World War II Japanese and American airplanes, passing by at random intervals as if time itself was unraveling. Apparent historical objects from a time that had not yet passed appeared in front of them too such as buildings that had not yet been constructed and vehicles and gadgets not yet invented. Earth history wasn't the only thing featured as events important to the ghost zone appeared as well, including what appears to be the origin of Clockwork and subsequently the birth of time itself. History itself appeared to merging and clashing together into sort sort of Anachronistic Stew. The constant sound of clocks ticking, cuckooing, ringing, timers going off could be heard in the background and sometimes became warped and distorted. The wormhole itself continually changed colors from neon green to hot pink to blood red to sky blue to purple to black and white. Danny, Sam, Tucker, Valerie, and Dan all kept calm and avoided panicking from the situation. Naturally, Danny, Sam, Tucker, and Valerie were confused by what was going on around them.**_

**Another chapter is in the books and we are close to wrapping things up. Looks like our heroes have gotten themselves into some deep trouble, but just how deep? You'll have to keep reading to find out. Hopefully it shouldn't be too long before the next update. On a side note, I know I've probably expressed this a lot in previous chapters, but man have these recent chapters been getting more and more over the top as the story continues. I'm trying to incorporate some humor, but all my attempts end up trying too hard or flat out failing. I hope that doesn't take away from the story too much. Then there are the plot holes from whenever I write myself into a corner. Man, Johnny was right, incorporating time travel is just asking for trouble.**


	32. Time Is Not On My Side

**GSTQ Chapter 31: Is This A Bad Time**

As soon as Clockwork's staff broke, all five combatants as well as Dan's absorbed counterparts knew that something bad was going to happen. Time seemed to freeze for a couple of seconds (and everyone hoped that that was the case and the worst case scenario) as nobody moved an inch. All of a sudden, Team Phantom and Dan found themselves nearly blinded and engulfed by a bright white light. When their vision returned and the light faded, the five found themselves traveling through what seemed like a wormhole at light speed, all while surrounded by portals leading to alternate timelines and universes. Period pieces from different points of history also appeared around them such as the Sphinx, Roman temples and coliseums, Triceratops skulls, Bodhisattva statues, the Titanic, the Hindenburg, World War II Japanese and American airplanes, passing by at random intervals as if time itself was unraveling. Apparent historical objects from a time that had not yet passed appeared in front of them too such as buildings that had not yet been constructed and vehicles and gadgets not yet invented. Earth history wasn't the only thing featured as events important to the ghost zone appeared as well, including what appeared to be the origin of Clockwork and subsequently the birth of time itself. History itself appeared to merging and clashing together into sort sort of Anachronistic Stew. The constant sound of clocks ticking, cuckooing, and ringing along with timers going off could be heard in the background and sometimes became warped and distorted. The wormhole itself continually changed colors from neon green to hot pink to blood red to sky blue to purple to black and white. Danny, Sam, Tucker, Valerie, and Dan all kept calm and avoided panicking from the situation. Naturally, Danny, Sam, Tucker, and Valerie were confused by what was going on around them.

"What's going on?" Sam finally asked as the shock and confusion wore off.

"Idiotic past self ended up breaking Clockwork's staff and thanks to him, now we're all prisoners of time!" Dan yelled. _"Thanks to him?!" __Dan__ retorted. "You helped break the staff too, this is all your fault!"_

"So where are we now?" Valerie asked with her and everyone else having a hard time wrapping their heads around what was happening.

"I have no idea," Dan replied. "It's possible that we're currently outside of time itself or that we've been erased somehow from all existing timelines as a result of past self's idiocy."

_"Way to go, dipshit!" __Phantom__ snapped at his host. "How many times did I tell you to just kill the kids and move on rather than be theatrical? Now because of __**your **__idiocy, we're going to be wiped from existence!"_

"I highly doubt we've been erased from existence," Danny said after he caught a brief glimpses at two events that made that scenario impossible.

"And why do you think that?" Tucker asked.

"Just a hunch," Danny said as he turned and smiled at Sam, blushing.

The four ghost hunters and the villainous fusion ghost continued traveling through the mysterious wormhole through time that seemed to have no ending in sight. At least until the five saw another blinding bright light approaching quickly. Nobody knew if the light was good or bad.

They'd soon receive their answer as they went through the white light. There was a brief moment where everything faded to black before the time wormhole spat them… into an empty white void. There was literally nothing indicating that the five were in any timeline or universe at all. They were all floating with seemingly nothing solid below or above them for them to stand on. The two sides called an unspoken truce until they could figure out where they were and how they could get out of this predicament. Everything was deadly silent and there were no signs of any other forms of life in this vast place that seemed to go on for eternity. It took a while for Team Phantom to even become aware of what was going and they still didn't have an idea of what had happened and where the wormhole had spit them out. Dan, on the other hand, knew about this place all too well thanks to the time he spent in imprisonment listening to Clockwork.

"Now where are we?" Tucker asked, the emptiness of the white abyss causing his voice to echo. "Are we even in a place that can be called somewhere?"

"Now we're fucking screwed!" Dan snapped. "I'd rather have been stuck in that wormhole or even that dreaded thermos than stuck in this place! At least in the thermos, there was some way out even if it took me nearly two years to break free!"

"Where are we?" Danny asked him, wanting to know exactly what this place was.

"We're in The Void!" Dan hissed, trying to keep a cool head and his voice booming throughout the void. Dan further elaborated. "Before you ask, The Void is a dimension that exists outside of all of time and space and the multiverse. According to The Old Fuck, there's only two ways to enter this place and one of those ways is to cease existing in the physical world. The other way is to be imprisoned here. From what I heard from eavesdropping, the Observants used this place to imprison the Ghost Zone's most dangerous and it's almost impossible to escape. Only one being has managed to escape this dimension. Once you're here, your basically stuck here forever; but don't be too upset because eventually you'll experience cessation of existence… very slowly over the course of 10 years. Not even Clockwork's staff can help us get out"

"So what you're saying is that we've wiped ourselves from the multiverse and are trapped here until we completely cease to exist?" Sam asked, dreading the answer. "And that there's no way out of here?"

"Yes! It's like I just didn't get finished explaining that!" A frustrated Dan replied.

"Well guys, we better start working on a way to get out of here," Danny said.

"What?!" Dan said, wondering if his past self was really that stupid or if he was so desperate to find a way out that he had gone insane. "Are you deaf or something? I just told you that there's no way out of here! Should I say have it differently? We're all trapped here, forever, with no exit! Escaping is impossible!"

"Good, because if my memory serves correctly, I've done things beyond the impossible before," Danny retorted with a smirk before saying to his friends. "Alright guys, stand back, I've got an idea." Danny took a deep breath and let out his biggest and most powerful Ghostly Wail, not holding back anything. A ripple effect seemed to tear through the white abyss as a result of Danny's Ghostly Wail, which only served to further convinced Danny that there was a way out.

Dan could only watch in astonishment as it seemed like Danny was going to do what he said and do the impossible. Several more ripples tore through the strange dimension like stones skipping over water. Danny started to become tired but tried to keep the Ghostly Wail going as long as possible. Finally, a small tear appeared in the empty white nothingness of the void, prompting Sam to ask Dan to hand over the other half of Clockwork's staff. Thinking that he was close to getting close to getting free, Dan handed over it over without hesitation. Sam quickly put the two pieces together and sealed them together using sap from her vines. She then began using it to tear the hole open even further. The five could see that the tear lead back to the wormhole that would hopefully lead them back to the main timeline. Finally Sam managed to open up the wormhole enough for the five of them to jump through it.

"Back through the rabbit hole," Valerie quipped as they traveled through the wormhole once again.

"I have to admit past self, that was a pretty solid idea," Dan complimented Danny, even though he still planned on killing him and taking back the staff as soon as they were out of the wormhole.

Pretty soon, Danny, Sam, Tucker, Valerie, and Dan saw the white light coming up once again. The five went through the white light… and found themselves right back in The Void. They were all disappointed, but Dan predictably was absolutely livid.

"THAT ENTIRE SEQUENCE WAS ABSOLUTELY POINTLESS! WE'RE STILL TRAPPED IN THIS TIMELESS PLANE AND JUST LIKE I SAID THERE IS NO WAY OUT!" Dan screamed before calming down slightly and saying in an eerily quiet voice. "Since I'm stuck here, I might as well pass the time until I fade into nothingness; and what better way to pass the time than by beating the shit out of you"

With that, Dan sprang into attack, going after the four teens with a vengeance. He charged at Sam before disappearing as reappearing behind her and kicking her in the back of the head. Dan turned her around and viciously head butted her in the face, breaking Sam's nose and causing blood to splatter and float in the air. When Danny charged to save his wife from Dan's vicious assault, Dan used Sam to bludgeon him in the ribs slamming Sam back first across his knee, almost breaking her in half. Dan turned his attention to a stunned Danny by slamming his knee into Danny's face with as much force as possible, coming close to breaking Danny's jaw and knocking out two teeth. Dan unleashed lightning fast punches to Danny's torso, driving the wind out of the boy's body before slapping him in the face, causing Danny's head to violently jerk to the side. Dan stuck his leg backwards and kicked Danny in the chest as hard as he could, sending the latter flying through the abyss. Dan hadn't forgotten about Tucker and Valerie and quickly directed his attack towards them.

"Don't think that I've forgotten about the two of you!" Dan yelled as he flew after Tucker, who ducked a clothesline and tried going in the opposite direction on his hover board only for Dan to grab him by the back his neck and roughly pull him backwards into an elbow to the back of his head. "You two should consider yourself fortunate, since you two would've died of starvation anyway, I've decided to kill you. Don't you worry though, I'll make sure your death is slow and painful,"

Valerie attempted to come to Tucker's aid, but was instead met with a straight right to the face. Dan let Tucker drop and float motionless in the void while he grabbed Valerie by her wrist and repeatedly kneed her in the ribs. Valerie gasped and coughed up blood from the continuous blows, which were barely cushioned by Valerie's body armor. After a few more seconds of repeatedly kneeing Valerie in the ribs, Dan hit her with a brutal uppercut, making her head violently jerk backwards and almost broke her neck. Dan could've easily vaporized all of them, but since there was no way out and his hesitation to kill them couldn't possibly make things any worse, why not give them a no holds barred beat down. Dan returned his focus to the king and Queen, leaving Tucker and Valerie barely conscious. Danny and Sam were slowly getting to their feet, each of them clutching their torsos as Dan floated towards them.

"You just had to play hero, didn't you?" Dan hissed as he grabbed the two by their heads and bashed them against each other. "You just couldn't stay down, could you? Thanks to your stubborn persistence, we're all trapped here in this plane of nothing! Your friends are lucky since they can die, but you two… I'm going to spend these next ten years making your time here as painful as possible." Dan stopped so he could knock both of them on their back with a swift kick to the side of their heads. "I'll spend every waking second breaking and mangling your bodies. By the time I'm done, you'll be begging for death." Dan kicked Danny in the back, launching him a couple feet upwards. Dan picked Danny up by his neck and held him over his head staring daggers at him. "This time you've really messed things up and there's no turning back from here,"

Danny's eyes lit up as he got another idea. "Dan, wait! I've got an idea!"

"What are you going to do?" Dan asked, tightening his grip on Danny's throat. "Try to pull a Majin Buu again? Face it, we're stuck here. There was only a one way entrance to this place and we went through it already!"

"Just give me another chance," Danny pleaded, hoping that Dan would listen to him. Dan was obviously reluctant to give Danny another chance and maintained his chokehold. "Come on, what else do you have to lose? I can't possibly mess things up more than they already are."

Realizing that he was right, Dan relented and let Danny go, but warned him. "You have one chance."

Danny pulled out the Wacky Watch and told everyone to grab hands. Everyone complied and joined hands while Danny hoped that what he had in mind would work. Danny moved the minute hand on the watch back by ten minutes and pressed the button on top. Time then moved backwards for Danny, Sam, Tucker, Valerie, and Dan as everything literally rewound, bringing everyone back right before Danny and Dan ended up breaking Clockwork's staff. It was literally as if a video game player had reloaded his save file from the last checkpoint as the protagonists were back in Neo Amity Park in the exact same positions they were ten minutes ago. The only difference was that everyone present retained their memories of what happened last time. With that knowledge, both Danny and Dan let go of Clockwork's staff, not caring if the other gained possession as a result. Neither wanted to risk being sent back to the Void and realized it would be much easier to let their enemy get the staff instead. Unfortunately, they forgot that at the time they were fighting for the staff, both were floating hundreds of meters in the air and thus the staff started plummeting towards the ground.

"NO!" Danny and Dan both exclaimed simultaneously as they raced after the staff to prevent it from being broken a second time. Dan had a trick up his sleeve though and quickly blasted Danny in the face, stunning him and allowing Dan to effortlessly reclaim the time staff.

Dan took a moment to breathe a sigh of relief at his assumed victory and at the fact that he wasn't stuck in the Void. "Thanks for getting us out of there, past self," Dan said as he floated over to a incapacitated Danny and took the Wacky Watch away from him. "Also, thanks for the new toy, I could find a good use for this. Such as going back to our first encounter today and annihilating you then and there to prevent this mess from even happening!"

Dan used a dial on the back of the watch to turn the hands back by 3 hours and pressed the button on top while Team Phantom could only look on helplessly.

**In The Next Chapter:**

_**Danny and Sam were keeping an eye out for Dan, staying alert and watching each other's back, knowing that he could attack from anywhere at any moment. At the same time, Dan was trying to think of the perfect time to attack before he got an idea. Dan fired a blast at the two and deliberately missed before immediately going invisible. While Danny and Sam were looking in the direction of where the blast came from, Dan took advantage of the distraction and attacked the pair from behind quickly before Danny's ghost sense could give him away. Striking the two halfas on the back of their necks, Dan temporarily stunned them allowing him to shoot them in the back with a strong ectoblast. As they rose to their feet, Dan appeared from beneath the ground and grabbed their ankles, pulling them beneath the earth. Taking a few steps back, Dan Dan forward with the intent of kicking their heads clean off. What happened instead was Sam pulling him beneath the ground while uprooting herself and Danny. Sam held Dan in place with her vines. While Dan struggled, Danny took a few steps back and kicked Dan in the head. Dan managed from free himself by using his own flame based abilities to burn the vines restraining him. Dan contemplated his next move. His Ghostly Wail could easily be countered by his younger counterpart with the latter's own ghostly wail. The whole blast away strategy hadn't worked and likely still wouldn't work due to the couple's speed advantage. The only thing Dan outclassed them in was strength and close combat. If only he still had his telekinesis. If Dan could separate them and fight them individually, he'd have a much easier time dealing with them. The only question was how would he incapacitate one of them long enough to deal with the other and who he should take out first. As if to help him make the decision, Danny tried attacking Dan from above him while Sam attacked from below. After sidestepping both of them causing them to crash into each other, Dan grabbed Danny by the back of his neck and burned him with his pyrokinesis. Danny screamed in pain before slipping into unconsciousness and falling to the ground below**_.

**We're getting close to the end of the "Future Shock/ Time Twisting" story arc. Everything is going to be wrapped up neatly in the next chapter before moving immediately to the next storyline. Trust me when I say the next chapter's going to be a long one. I hope you enjoyed and have a great day, peace out!**


	33. All Out of Time

**God Save The Queen Chapter 32: The Time Has Come**

Our protagonists could only watch in horror as Dan activated the Wacky Watch, to turn back time by three hours. Dan laughed victoriously, now certain that he had won. His laughter and feeling of triumph soon turned to confusion and anger when instead of going back three hours, Dan instead ended up de-aging himself by three hours. This resulted in Dan separating from his counterparts, reverting him to his base form.

"What the hell?!" Dan asked in confusion, looking down at himself. "What the hell is this?! Why am I back in my original form?!"

"Looks like you just shot yourself in the foot," Sam quipped as she and Danny attacked the now significantly weaker Dan Phantom, punching him in the face and sending him back several meters.

"That's what happens when you use things you have no idea how to work," Danny added, taking back the Wacky Watch that Dan had dropped.

"You know, I don't know how you possibly thought your plan could've possibly worked," Dan said, stretching his muscles upon being freed. "Even if the Wacky Watch worked as you intended, it still would've undid all your progress"

"Now that the playing field is even, I believe it's time to finish this once and for all," Danny said to Dan.

"Don't think I'm done for just yet, I can still re-merge with the other me's and wipe the floor with you," said Dan.

"There is no way in hell you're fusing with me again," Dan said, eager to step into battle to assist Team Phantom in battling Dan. Dan launched himself at his evil counterpart, intending to get some well deserved retribution from being trapped within him, only to be cut off by a kick to the face by Phantom.

"Have you forgotten about me?" Phantom asked. "With Clockwork's staff, we literally have all the time in the world to make sure other me's plan succeeds." Phantom then looked over at Dan and said "And despite losing my free will by combining with numbskull over here, I'm more than willing to fuse with him a second time if it means finally getting rid of all of you,"

"Ha, it's funny because it's as if you think that we're actually going to just sit back and let that happen," Dan retorted before telling Danny and Sam "You two take care of your timeline's Dan; Valerie, Tucker, and I will deal with his idiotic inbred cousin,"

"We'll do what?!" Tucker exclaimed, having done more than enough fighting for one day.

"We've got one more chance, don't fuck it up!" Phantom said to Dan as he turned to fly off to fight the trio and leave Dan alone for his fight.

"Same to you," Dan retorted before facing Danny and Sam. Dan sighed and said "Well what are we waiting for, let's get this over with"

For a few moments, neither side made a move, not wanting to make a crucial mistake early in the fight. Dan hadn't forgotten that his first fight with Danny had ended in a draw, making him a bit hesitant to make a move. He also remembered that he managed to hold off Sam, Tucker, and Valerie at the same time during that first fight. Dan devised a plan and made the first move, creating a bright ball of ectoplasm to temporarily blind Danny and Sam. Dan then made a beeline for Sam, knowing that Danny would come to her defense. Sure enough, Danny flew in to intercept Dan's attack, only for Dan to turn left at the very last second and drive his shoulder into Danny's ribcage as hard as possible. Dan turned around to attack Sam only for Sam to poke him in the eyes and drive her elbow into his stomach while he couldn't see.

"Dirty sneaky little bi-," Dan growled before being cut off when Sam kicked him in the crotch. Dan immediately curled up to defend his crotch. Dan didn't even know that as he ghost, he could feel pain in that region.

"Tsk, tsk, watch your language," Sam said before roundhouse kicking Dan in the back of the head.

Danny was quickly back in the battle, by driving both of his feet into Dan's chest like a missile. Dan crashed into the ground hard but was up and about in a matter of seconds. Dan immediately turned invisible with the intent of sneaking up on the couple. Danny's ghost sense ended up giving him away and the couple hit him with dual punches to the gut. Dan grunted and charged up an explosive ectoball, but surprised Danny and Sam by detonating the ectoball prematurely. We're it not for a split second reaction from Danny, who threw up a shield around them, the two would've been hurt much more than they were. The two sustained a couple of minor burns on their hands and necks as well as a number of cuts. The downside of Dan's sneak suicide attack was that he ended up hurting himself just as bad. Dan however shook off the pain and nailed Danny with a stiff uppercut before throwing Sam headfirst into his chest. Dan tossed both couples even further into the air and followed after them. He then took turns kicking them both in the chest like they were soccer balls, propelling them even higher. Dan then flew above them and hammered them both back down to earth with an ax handed smash. The resulting collision ended up creating a crater and Dan didn't waste any time in moving in to follow up on the attack. Dan attempted to cave the couples' chests in by trying to stomp on them. Fortunately for the royal couple, they managed to roll out of the way just in time. Sam acted quick and tripped Dan up with a quick leg sweep to the back of his legs. Danny took advantage while Dan was flat on his back and pinned Dan down with several icicles. Before either Danny or Sam could take advantage of an immobilized Dan, the latter shot Danny with an eye beam. Sam countered Dan's attempt to shoot her with an eye beam by growing a huge mesh of vines and wrapping them around Dan's face, causing his attack to backfire and explode in his face. Dan muttered angrily before going intangible and slipping underground to recuperate for a few minutes.

"You know you brats have really been a colossal pain in our ass today," Phantom said as he cracked his knuckles. Phantom then turned to address Dan. "And as for you, I'm disgusted, how could you actually side with those soft hearted heroic fools than your own alternate selves?"

"Just one me is annoying enough, but having to work with two other me's? I'd rather end my unlife" Dan replied. "Especially after being trapped in the same body as you and Dan."

"I ask again, why are we here?" Tucker asked. "You easily held your own against our Dan and came close to winning, I'm pretty sure this guy wouldn't be much of a problem."

"Because last time I went at this alone, I ended up being reduced to a voice in the head of a homicidal evil genius wannabe with that even more homicidal lunatic as my only company," Dan pointed out. "I'll take all the help I can get to make sure that doesn't happen again. Also, with you two backing me up, I have two extra pair of eyes who can keep an eye on this lunatic to make sure he doesn't try anything funny like interfere in Danny and Sam's fight with other me or fuse with him while they're distracted. Besides, the only reason I didn't win my fight with your version of me is because you all distracted me at a crucial moment. Having you as backup hopefully makes that less likely to occur,"

"Just don't get arrogant and try hogging him to yourself like last time," Valerie reminded him. While the three were talking, Phantom had gotten bored waiting and decided to get the fight started by impaling Dan through this chest with a metal rod. Phantom then attacked a surprised Tucker and Valerie with ectoblasts, gaining the early advantage.

"Talking is not a free action when you are dealing with me!" Phantom yelled as he hit Tucker in the face with a bunch of bananas he stole from a street vendor. Phantom then turned around to nail Valerie with a spinning backfist and hit Dan with a head butt.

Dan was quick to retaliate, angrily ripping the iron rod from his chest and lobbing it Phantom's head. Phantom dodged by that didn't stop Dan from punching him in the face and uppercutting Phantom in the throat. Dan went for a kick to the side of Phantom's head, but Phantom caught his leg. With a sneak attack of her own, Valerie nailed Phantom in the back of the head with her forearm while Tucked returned the banana favor by splattering a bunch of bananas in Dan's face and head butting him in the mouth. Dan added to the attack by blasting Phantom in the face point blank sending him flying into the sky. Dan, Tucker, and Valerie all followed after Phantom and hit him with simultaneous drop kicks to the chest. Dan then grabbed Phantom by the back of his head and flew towards the ground as fast as he could. The enraged Dan was flying so fast that he and Phantom ended up igniting on the way down. Dan slammed Phantom face first into the ground, causing an explosion of dirt and chunks of rocks to fly upwards as well as creating a huge crater. Both phantoms were hurt by the attack, but Dan was back up first and shook his head.

"Damn, did he piss in your cereal or something?" Tucker asked sarcastically as he and Valerie landed beside Dan. "I mean he deserved that, but that was vicious,"

"Please, Phantom would probably do the same to us if he got the chance," Valerie pointed out.

"If the dumb, inbred, second rate me can't take the pain, he shouldn't sneak attack people who are stronger than him!" Dan replied as he kicked Phantom in the face, knocking him back down. "Come on, stop talking and fight unless you want him to pull another trick out of his sleeve,"

Dan then kicked Phantom again, grabbed him by his wrist and attempted to flip Phantom onto his back. In midair however, Phantom reversed and instead tossed Dan into the air. Phantom intercepted an attempted attack from Tucker with a back elbow just below the chin, knocking him to the ground. When Phantom flew after Dan, Valerie flew her hover board into his face.

Danny and Sam were keeping an eye out for Dan, staying alert and watching each other's back, knowing that he could attack from anywhere at any moment. At the same time, Dan was trying to think of the perfect time to attack before he got an idea. Dan fired a blast at the two and deliberately missed before immediately going invisible. While Danny and Sam were looking in the direction of where the blast came from, Dan took advantage of the distraction and attacked the pair from behind quickly before Danny's ghost sense could give him away. Striking the two halfas on the back of their necks, Dan temporarily stunned them allowing him to shoot them in the back with a strong ectoblast. As they rose to their feet, Dan appeared from beneath the ground and grabbed their ankles, pulling them beneath the earth. Taking a few steps back, Dan Dan forward with the intent of kicking their heads clean off. What happened instead was Sam pulling him beneath the ground while uprooting herself and Danny. Sam held Dan in place with her vines. While Dan struggled, Danny took a few steps back and kicked Dan in the head. Dan managed from free himself by using his own flame based abilities to burn the vines restraining him. Dan contemplated his next move. His Ghostly Wail could easily be countered by his younger counterpart with the latter's own ghostly wail. The whole blast away strategy hadn't worked and likely still wouldn't work due to the couple's speed advantage. The only thing Dan outclassed them in was strength and close combat. If only he still had his telekinesis. If Dan could separate them and fight them individually, he'd have a much easier time dealing with them. The only question was how would he incapacitate one of them long enough to deal with the other and who he should take out first. As if to help him make the decision, Danny tried attacking Dan from above him while Sam attacked from below. After sidestepping both of them causing them to crash into each other, Dan grabbed Danny by the back of his neck and burned him with his pyrokinesis. Danny screamed in pain before slipping into unconsciousness and falling to the ground below.

"Now that the kid's been put to bed, you and I have some alone time," Dan joked as turned to face Sam. Dan attempted to punch her in the face, but Sam grabbed his fist and flipped him over, sending Dan cartwheeling through the air before he corrected himself. Sam quickly pounced on him, brutally driving her knee into his upper spine before unloading a series of strikes to the back of his head. Becoming agitated and starting to get double vision, Dan turned around and harshly grabbed a hold of Sam's wrists. "Could you please stop doing that?"

"Will you surrender, go away, and never bother us again?" Sam asked, already knowing how Dan would respond.

"Hell no!" Dan replied.

"There's your answer," Sam said before attempting to punch Dan again, only for him to catch her other fist.

"It's a shame, we could've ruled the multiverse together," Dan said. "I certainly would make a better ruled than my foolish past self."

"I doubt we could've ruled together," Sam said. "The only reason you let me live that all is because I'm a half ghost now!"

Dan chuckled and replied " You don't get it, do you? I never cared if you were a halfa or not? It was never important to me. If anything it's only an added benefit because it means I can be as rough with you as possible and not have to worry about accidentally killing you". Dan then forcefully tongue kissed Sam, laughing as she struggled and tried to get out of his grip. Sam got out of the situation by biting off part of Dan's long forked tongue, causing him to hiss in pain and withdraw from Sam's mouth. Sam spit out the part of Dan's tongue she had bitten off, while Dan spit out green ectoplasm before his healing factor regenerated his tongue. Pissed off, Dan ignited his left hand and punched Sam in the right eye, giving her a sick burn over her eye and nearly blinding it. Sam screamed and grabbed at her eye before Dan hit her with another flaming punch, this time to the jaw, sending her hurtling into the ground.

Danny started to stir upon hearing his wife's scream and weakly opened his eyes. Seeing that Danny was starting to regain consciousness and needing to keep him and Sam isolated, Dan sprung quickly and pounced on Danny. With all of his weight, Dan viciously drove his knee into the stomach of a supine Danny. Danny coughed up a combination of blood and ectoplasm. Danny gasped and wheezed, trying to draw air into his lungs as it felt as if all the air in his body had been squeezed out of him like a tube of toothpaste. Figuring that Sam wouldn't be a factor in the fight for at least another few minutes, Dan focused his attention squarely on Danny. Dan grabbed Danny by his neck, flipped him through the air and tossed him hard into the ground. Dan then did it a second time, then a third, and then a forth, all while Danny feebly tried defending himself. Finally Dan tossed Danny straight upwards into the sky and charged up a huge ectoblast kamehameha style. Before he could fire however, Danny went invisible and utilized his lightning fast speed by flying behind Dan, grabbing him by his legs and proceeding to repeatedly smash Dan face first into the ground. Danny spun around rapidly while holding onto Dan's legs before Dan managed to wiggle one leg free and kick Danny in the face. Dan then nailed Danny with a spinning forearm smash to the face, taking Danny off his feet once again. Not wanting to give Danny another chance to utilize his speed, Dan pummeled him with a string of punches, bloodying the Ghost King in the process. Danny knew he'd have to do something to get back into the fight and quickly or else Dan could come out victorious. Danny quickly separated himself from the maniac to put some distance between them so he could think. When Dan predictably lunged after him, Danny thought quickly and used the moisture in the air around him to create an ice javelin. Flying too fast to stop or turn intangible in time, Dan ended up stabbing himself through the stomach. While Danny's actions didn't stop Dan, it did slow him down considerably and gave Danny more time to think.

Dan meanwhile was doubled over in pain, ectoplasm oozing from the stab wound. Dan's demeanor was calm, cool, and collected, the exact opposite of how he was feeling, which was absolutely livid. Dan had to admit that the kids were clever and crafty, but he getting a little sick and tired of them continually pulling new tricks out of their hats. He could be be defeated by the duo, but Dan refused to be outsmarted by two adolescents who previously shouldn't have been able to stand a chance against him. Still, he remained calm and concentrated, knowing that the minute he showed signs of anger and frustration, he'd become more reckless and the more reckless he became, the more vulnerable he was. Plus, Dan knew that Danny and Sam had to give him everything they had if they wanted a chance at victory while he had plenty of power to spare. If he could make it appear as if he were still in control, he maybe could make them fight more recklessly and truly take control of the battle. Dan then took a deep breath, making it appear as if he were setting up the ghostly wail. When Danny got close to gag his mouth and stop him, Dan floored him with a ferocious clothesline. While Danny was grasping at his neck (which thankfully wasn't broken), Dan placed his boot on his head and began pressing down to crush Danny's head. Danny let out an agonized scream as he felt his head slowly being crushed while Dan smiled with sadistic delight at his suffering.

Back with Phantom, Valerie, Tucker, and Dan weren't having much trouble dealing with the psychotic ghost. Valerie hammered Phantom with a kick to the chest, sending Phantom flying into a kick to the ribs from Tucker, which sent Phantom hurtling towards Dan, who smashed him into the ground with a double fisted blow to the head. Phantom spat out some ectoplasm before slowly climbing back to his feet. Phantom turned around and was hit in the gut with a bo staff by Tucker. After doubling over in pain for a brief second, Phantom recovered and hit Tucker in the gut with his elbow before uppercutting him. Dan was back on Phantom like fur on a dog in an instant, backhanding him in the mouth and pulling Phantom's head into his knee. Despite the fact that he was currently getting his ass handed to him, Phantom maintained a sinister psychotic smirk the entire time. After getting punched through a building, Phantom got back to his feet, still sporting that terrifying grin.

"Okay, this has been fun and all, but when am I going to get a turn to beat people up?" Phantom asked before letting out an insane laugh.

"Oh, don't you worry, this game'll be over real soon and you won't have to worry about getting a turn!" Dan replied, coming after Phantom once again with a superman punch only for Phantom to suddenly catch his fist.

"That sounds fun and all, but I really want a turn," Phantom said, his voice becoming eerily deep and calm. Phantom then repeatedly kicked Dan in the chest while holding onto him by the wrist. Dan bounced up and down from the kicks like a paddleball before Phantom sent him crashing through a building, which proceeded to collapse on him. While Dan was stunned, Phantom said to Tucker and Valerie "Come on, don't just stand there! Don't be shy, children; step right up, step right up for the beat down of the century!"

The two teens took Phantom up on his challenge with Valerie attacking using a sword and Tucker a bo staff. Phantom gracefully dodged both weapons and hit an impressive split legged kick on both of them. Tucker and Valerie weren't slowed down much, with Tucker taking a risk by engaging with Phantom in close combat. He managed to avoid two punches to the face with ease and shot Phantom in the face with a pistol. Phantom retaliated with a head butt before swatting Tucker aside. It turned out that Tucker was merely acting as a distraction to allow Valerie to plant a couple of sticky grenades on his back. Phantom futilely tried reaching the tiny explosives to pull them off before they detonated, but failed. The sticky grenades exploded, leaving a large portion of Phantom's back and some parts on his hands and lower arms with severe burns and ectoplasm dripping from them. Despite being in immense pain, Phantom only let out another maniacal laugh, giving off the impression that he was enjoying his suffering.

"I have to admit, that was a pretty smart strategy, I give it a 9.6," Phantom said, still laughing like a nutjob. "Just don't try and pull that stunt again,"

"Is he actually laughing at getting his ass kicked?" Dan asked, having finally recovered from being punched through a building and legitimately taken off guard and a bit creeped out by his counterpart's psychosis. "And I thought I was an unstable lunatic,"

"How dare you call me unstable!" Phantom joked after hearing Dan's accusation. "In all seriousness, it's good to see you've woken up from your little nap. Hurry up and get back in the game! We've been waiting anxiously for you!"

"I've never seen someone so eager to die, but if that's what you want!" Dan said before immediately shooting at Phantom with an ectoblast.

Phantom dodged and looked at his three opponents, who were trying to formulate their next plan of attack. Phantom, on the other hand, had no plan of attack other than beat down whoever stood in his way until they stopped moving. For him, the best defense was destructive offense. As such, Phantom caught the trio by surprise by charging at them while they were still trying to come up with a game plan. Not expecting such a brazen attack from Phantom, all three were taken down in a short amount of time. Phantom took down Tucker with a straight kick to the face, surprised Dan with a knee lift to the face followed by slamming him face first into the pavement, and brought Valerie down by shooting her in the stomach. To keep Dan down for a few minutes, Phantom curb stomped his face into the ground again and again and finished by scorching him with a burst of flames. To incapacitate Tucker for a few minutes, Phantom hit him with a flying knee lift right under the chin, coming dangerously close to snapping the techno geek's neck. All of that took Phantom less than 30 seconds and once he was finished, he hoisted Valerie up by her wrist and held her so that they were looking eye to eye.

"You know it's funny how I've fought two versions of you and both of you have been almost worthy challengers," Phantom said, taking a short trip down memory lane. Phantom smiled and let out a small groan of pleasure as he reminisced about the fight with his timeline's Valerie. He quickly shook his head and got back on topic. "It's almost as if you and I were destined to fight for all eternity. I mean, even before I fused with Plasmius and when I still had a human half, you declared yourself my archenemy and fought me many times. No one else has even come close to defeating me in combat."

"What about our timeline's Danny? I'm pretty sure he reduced you to a puddle of hoop before our timeline's version of you interfered and saved you" Valerie reminded him, sporting a smirk beneath her helmet, intentionally trying to get under Phantom's skin to get him to fight more recklessly and exposes more weaknesses. What Valerie didn't know was that unlike the Dan she and the others had been fighting all day, a pissed off Phantom didn't become more careless and sloppy. Instead, he became even more dangerous because of his reckless nature. She would soon learn her mistake when Phantom started electrocuting her with his ghost stinger.

"THAT NEVER HAPPENED!" Phantom roared, dropping his faux affable attitude and showing much more blatant sadism. "I guess you and my timeline's Valerie have one other thing in common: as skilled as you were, neither of you could defeat me and both of you died by my hands!". Valerie convulsed violently as electricity coursed through her body, all while Phantom watched with a sadistic smile, wanting to make Valerie's death as painful as possible.

Sam slowly started to stir when she heard the sound of her husband crying in pain. Upon fully regaining consciousness, Sam wasted no time in heading in the direction of the scream to assist Danny before it was too late. Danny cried in agony as he felt his head starting to cave in from the pressure of Dan's boot and he began to lose consciousness. Dan prepared to put his foot down and end the superhero before a sharp, thorny vine stabbed through his left shoulder from behind. Dan winced and hissed in pain before turning around, knowing where the vine had come from. Dan growled and prepared to retaliate, only for several more thorny vines to emerge from Sam's body and stab him in various parts of his body, including his arms, legs, shoulders, and pectorals. While Dan was on his knees, tending to his wounds, Sam found a creative new use of her plant powers and summoned a large Venus Flytrap to swallow Dan.

"Danny, can you hear me?" Sam asked, tending to her groggy husband while Dan was struggling to free himself from the flytrap. Danny could only mumble incoherently as he went in and out of consciousness. "Come on, get up! You can't give up now after everything we went through to stop Dan." Danny started to become unresponsive and Sam began desperately trying to revive him. "Come on Danny, I'm not going to let you die on me! Don't give up on me!" Sam said, tending to Danny's head as tears rolled down her cheeks despite her best attempts at holding them back. "Damn it, Daniel James Fenton, don't you dare die on me!". Dan was getting closer and closer to freeing himself of the carnivorous plant as things began to look bleak. Just when it seemed as if all hope was lost, Sam's hands suddenly began glowing gold as she gently cradled Danny's head in her arms. Danny began to stir before finally regaining consciousness and taking a look around.

"Sam? What happened?" Danny asked as he sat up, confused before remembering what had happened and noticing Sam's glowing hands. "How did you do that?"

"Do what?" Sam asked, wrapping her arms around Danny, relieved that he had recovered.

"Your hands, they healed me," Danny revealed, pointing out to Sam that her hands were still glowing gold. "How did you manage to do that?"

"I-I don't know," Sam said, just as confused as Danny by what transpired. She quickly smiled and said "I guess I've discovered another unique power, a healing touch."

"Well isn't that adorable, you discovered a new ability," Dan snarked, interrupting the couple's touching moment as he let out an explosive burst of energy, completely destroying the flytrap and freeing himself. He took a moment to stretch his limbs before staring daggers at the two of them. "It's a shame that you discovered this new ability right before your demise."

"In your dreams," Danny replied. "Give up the facade, it's clear that you're taking far more damage than we are! Your chances of victory are growing more and more slim as this fight goes on!"

Dan chuckled and replied "After everything I've done today, you both should know that even when it seems like the odds aren't in my favor, I always have a secret ace in the hole. No matter what you do, it's you that's fighting the losing battle. You can't outfight me and you can't outsmart me and even if you somehow manage to do so, I have a portable deus ex machina on my side so I can turn back time and correct any mistake I previously made. You may know of the future, but I still control the past, present, and the future! I am the chessmaster while you are mere pawns in my game!" Dan then went to retrieve Clockwork's staff, only to find that it wasn't on him anymore. "What the?! Where did it go?! I could've sworn I had it in my clutches just a few minutes ago!"

"Looking for Clockwork's staff?" Sam asked mockingly.

"What the hell did you two do with it?!" Dan asked, showing signs of frustration for the first time in the fight. "Where is it?!"

"Maybe if you had been paying attention earlier, you would've noticed that I managed to swipe the staff after you tried to stomp out chests in," Danny revealed, sporting a smirk "I mean you certainly wouldn't want to risk it being broken and ending up in the Void again, would you?"

"Where is it?!" Dan demanded, looking like he was close to throwing a temper tantrum to the point where even his flaming hair flared up as if to accentuate his breakdown. "Tell me where you put it right now!"

"We hid it somewhere safe," Danny answered. "Where it's not at risk of getting broken and you can't get your hands on it.". Danny could see that whatever was left of Dan's sanity was hanging on by a thread. "Sorry, looks like your time's run out and you're down to your last life,"

"You'll pay for this!" Dan roared before launching into an attack. Without a care in the world, Dan furiously fired off ectoblasts, fire balls and blasts at the couple, showing little concern for anything else. Danny and Sam were forced to frantically dodge every attack Dan threw their way, which ironically, was harder than dodging Dan's "calculated" attacks. Dan was blinded by pure, unadulterated, unyielding rage, ignoring his own wounds and any counter attacks Danny or Sam threw at him. "I'm tired of you constantly somehow finding a way to screw up my plans! Sick of you always counteracting my moves and making me look like a fool!"

"Honestly didn't have to try that hard to make you look like a fool, you did that yourself," Sam replied. "What happened to constantly being in control and one step ahead of our every move, Mr "Chessmaster"?"

"Don't you dare mock me!" Dan screamed, shooting a huge burst of fire at Sam, who barely managed to sidestep the attack. Danny counteracted Dan's fire attack with an ice attack, causing a huge cloud of steam to engulf the area, hindering the vision of all three combatants. Dan calmed down slightly and decided to use the steam screen to his advantage, firing blasts at any silhouettes of the couple he could make out in the steam. They dodged the attacks and fired blasts of the their own at Dan. The cover provided by the steam allowed Sam to grow another plant that sprayed knockout gas in Dan's face, causing Dan become disoriented. Danny and Sam hoped that this would make Dan slower and easier to take down if not neutralize him altogether. They had no such luck however, as even though Dan became drowsier and moved much slower, he was still just as aggressive and trigger happy. Stumbling sluggishly towards the couple once the steam cleared, Dan's eyes were filled with nothing but sheer hatred. As a result of the sleeping has sprayed in his face, Dan could barely keep his eyes open. The only thing driving him now was his determination to kill Danny and Sam at all costs. "If you think that that little trick will save you from my wrath, then you must be dreaming!"

"He just doesn't know when to give up, does he?" Danny said before he and Sam unloaded on Dan with hard punches and kicks from all directions.

If you could describe the fight earlier as watching a tortoise try to fight a hare, now you could describe it as watching that same tortoise try to fight Sonic the Hedgehog. The two halfas were moving much too fast for Dan to comprehend and any attempt he made at fighting back was like watching a movie in slow motion. Knowing he was getting closer to losing as each second passed and that the knockout gas would soon knock him out if he didn't think fast, Dan acted out of desperation. To wake himself up, Dan turned his hand towards himself and blasted himself in the face. Although he did damage to himself, Dan's risky ploy worked as intended.

Rejuvenated and fully alert once more, Dan ended up catching Sam by her leg and Danny by his fist. Dan started slamming them against each other like he was playing the cymbals, doing even more internal damage to the already heavily injured couple. The royal couple managed to slip away and hit Dan with stereo spinning kicks to the side of the head. Dan staggered backwards a bit, but stayed on his feet and retaliated with a double flaming corkscrew uppercut, taking the battle back into the sky. Using teleport spam, Dan hammered Danny and Sam with vicious punches from all angles like they had done to him not too long ago. It looked as if neither side could gain and keep the definitive advantage. At this rate, the three were going to end up fighting forever. Something had to give and soon, but none of the three wanted to even consider giving up. Danny and Dan both didn't have enough power to use their strongest attacks effectively, but at this point it seemed to be their only other option. Or at least, it was Dan's only option. Danny still had his Crown of Fire, but using it with the Ring of Rage at this point would only make him lose more stamina, even if he had figured out how to use the artifacts efficiently. The action hadn't slowed down in the slightest while they were weighing their options, with everyone landing major hits, drawing blood and ectoplasm. The question remained, how much more could they all take?

Phantom held onto Valerie with a vice grip as continued torturing her. Valerie was fading fast, as darkness crept into her vision. Her head was spinning and her heart was nearly pounding out of her chest. Phantom was so focused on making Valerie suffer that he didn't notice Tucker coming up behind him. With one swift motion, he techno geek sliced through Phantom's injured back with his katana, causing Phantom to hiss in pain and immediately drop Valerie to the ground. Tucker moved swiftly and caught her in his arms before she collided with the concrete. Tucker took off her helmet so he could check her vitals to make sure she was still alive. He breathed a sigh of relief when he felt that Valerie still had a pulse and saw her chest steadily rise and fall.

"Don't do that! Never continually target your enemy's weak point, they eventually grow numb to the pain," Phantom said to Tucker as ectoplasm dripped down his burnt back. If Phantom was pissed, he certainly didn't show it as he continued wisecracking. Instead he gave an evil smile, baring his razor sharp fangs. "What you did was touching though, sacrificing yourself and taking Valerie's place, even if all you managed to do buy her a few more extra minutes of life. You know, you two would make a good couple."

With Valerie out cold and Dan currently down and out as well, only Tucker was left to stand up to Phantom. The Blue Hunter showed no signs of fear however, even though his mind was telling him to run for his life. Right now, Tucker was the only person standing in Phantom's way and he had to keep him busy long enough for either Dan and Valerie to wake back up or for Danny and Sam to finish off Dan and assist in taking down Phantom. Phantom must've known that as well as he wasted no time in making a beeline for Tucker. He swiped at Tucker with lefts and rights, but Tucker miraculously managed to dodge all of his punches.

"Hmm, I never thought I'd say this, but I'm going to have to thank Dash and the other jocks for all those years of bullying," Tucker thought to himself as he nimbly dodged Phantom's punches. Tucker then made a move and tried stabbing Phantom with his katana. Phantom moved slightly to the right and the katana caught him in the left part of his torso, just above his stomach. Phantom yelled and a socked Tucker in the eye, sending him spiraling towards the ground. Tucker's armor barely managed to cushion the fall and the techno geek felt his left leg buckle and give way. He couldn't tell if his leg was broken, but Tucker knew that he wouldn't be able to put weight on it.

Slowly stumbling to his feet, Tucker was forced to hobble and dodge as Phantom rained down a barrage of blasts on him. Tucker activated his force field, which deflected some of the shots long enough for Tucker to activated his hover board and try to get to safety. He quickly discovered that riding a hover board with one leg was just as difficult as walking with one leg. Still, the Blue Hunter adapted quickly and maneuvered around Phantom's attacks. Phantom quickly gave chase and started gaining on Tucker fast. Tucker thought the end was near and closed his eyes, bracing for impact. Just when it seemed like Phantom had Tucker in his grasp, he was intercepted and taken down by Dan, who was jumping back into the battle.

"You know, you all have this really bad tendency to interrupt me just before I can kill one of you," Phantom mused, growing tired of the pattern. "Oh well, prolong your suffering; just makes this much more fun for me!"

"Do you ever shut up?" Dan asked, just as agitated with Phantom's monologues as Phantom was with being stopped before he could kill. Dan then turned to Tucker and asked him "Are you alright? What about Valerie, is she okay?"

"I'm fine, I just can't put any weight on my leg. It's not broken, but I might've sprained my knee or torn something," Tucker explained. "Valerie's unconscious right now. Dan's electricity really did a number on her, but I think she's going to be okay."

"Good. I think it would be a good idea if you say out this round" Dan said. "I think I can keep this fruit loop occupied until Danny and Sam finish off our "cousin","

The two Dans clashed once again, with Dan ending up on the receiving end of continuous knee strikes to the face when Phantom grabbed him by his head. Dan got out of the clinch and quickly moved behind Phantom, before returning the favor by repeatedly kneeing Phantom's back. Phantom yowled and screamed in pain before backhanding Dan with all of his strength. The blow sent Dan flying backwards. Without missing a beat, Phantom fired a gigantic fireball at Dan which completely engulfed him in flames. Phantom thought he was back in control before he was blown up by a sudden rocket. After recovering from the explosion, Phantom saw that the assailant was none other than Valerie.

"OH COME ON!" Phantom exclaimed. "CAN'T I KILL JUST ONE OF YOU WITHOUT ANOTHER ONE OF YOU INTERFERING!"

Phantom then decided that it was time to give his three opponents a reminder of his telekinesis and began creating a giant ball of debris using cars, street lamps, buildings, floating television screens, and anything else he could get his hands on. Dan, Tucker, and Valerie frantically tried to stop Phantom by bombarding him with attacks, but Phantom simply deflected their attacks and continued crafting his twisted projectile. When Phantom was finished, he had created a giant sphere of metal and rubble that was roughly the size of an entire city block.

"Wait a minute, this was a Good Future, whatever happened to the people who lived here?" Valerie suddenly realized before noticing that one of the floating TV screens read "All residents evacuate to the escape chutes". "Well, I guess that answers that question."

"Try to survive this!" Phantom yelled before launching the death ball at the heroes.

There was a temporary rest for all three combatants as Danny, Sam, and Dan had all exhausted themselves and we're taking a minute to catch their breath. All three of them were covered in cuts, bruises, and other battle scars. Dan was trying to think of creative ways to make Danny and Sam suffer while he killed them with Danny and Sam were trying to think of a way to put Dan down permanently. The lovebirds had one advantage in that they could abuse Sam's healing touch ability for a quick heal whenever Dan seriously injured one of them. The only problem with that was that since it was a recently discovered power, Sam didn't have much knowledge on how to use it and since she was in the middle of an intense battle, didn't exactly have a lot of time to learn. The most she could do was just wing it and hope it worked out. They could only hope that Dan's healing factor couldn't heal his injuries just as quickly. While they had some time, Danny and Sam talked about what offensive strategies they could possibly use to defeat Dan. The two discussed using the crown and the ring if they completely ran out of options, but otherwise couldn't think of anything else they could do. Dan was tired of waiting and decided to get the fight going again by blasting Danny and Sam while their backs were still turned. The sneak attack allowed him to lay into them with vicious strikes. Dan knew that Sam didn't have any experience with her healing touch, but his new strategy was still to keep the lovebirds separated so she couldn't get any experience. Dan connected with a barbaric knee to Danny's face, busting his nose open. He then turned around and delivered a straight kick to Sam's face, creating a huge cut just above her already injured right eye. Dan grabbed Danny by his neck and soared through the air, grinding Danny's face against anything in his path before tossing him though the air and into a floating electronic billboard. Danny crashed hard against the floating screen and was subsequently electrocuted. As if that wasn't enough, the screen shattered, causing glass shards to become embedded in Danny's back, causing a few lacerations. Danny grimaced and did his best to block out the white hot pain in his back from the cuts. Danny fought back by catching a charging Dan with an ecto energy charged punch to the face, propelling Dan straight upwards, where Sam was waiting. Sam then connected with a double foot stomp to Dan's chest, sending Dan crashing back down to earth. Dan corrected himself moments before he would've hit the ground and came back, flying right into a double elbow to the mouth. While Dan was down for a couple of seconds, Sam started removing as many pieces of glass as she could from Danny's back. The reprieve was over almost as soon as it began as Dan threw fireballs at the couple from above them. One fireball caught Danny's left arm and burned through his outfit, scorching his skin. This time it was Dan's turn to get creative as he began spinning around rapidly while surrounded by a flaming aura until he resembled a fire whirl. While in his flaming tornado state, Dan went after Danny and Sam, moving faster than before. The lovebirds found that Dan was surprisingly quick and agile while in this state, requiring split second reactions from Danny and Sam. Despite managing to mostly avoid Dan and stay out of his path, the lovebirds still sustained a couple of burns, some of them as severe as third degree. Danny tried multiple times to counteract Dan with his cryokinesis, but couldn't get far enough away to use it without getting nearly incinerated by Dan. To give Danny space to work with, Sam split up and shot an ectoblast at Dan to get him to focus on her. Acting as a distraction, Sam lead Dan away from Danny, allowing the latter to shoot him with an ice blast. Again, steam arose as fire and ice collided, but Dan's flames began to steadily die out.

"Time to put you on ice!" Danny joked as Dan struggled to maintain his fire whirl.

Although Dan tried his damnedest to maintain his flames, he was no match for Danny's ice based abilities. The problem was that Dan's pyrokinesis relied on his own energy while Danny would create and fire ice beams using the moisture in the air which didn't require as much energy. The only thing that resulted from Dan's continued usage of his pyrokinesis was Dan losing more stamina at double the rate of his younger counterpart. As a result, Dan ended up doubled over in the air, panting and wiping sweat off of his forehead while Danny had more than enough left in the tank. Knowing that his enemies would try to take advantage of his exhaustion, Dan threw up an ecto energy shield bubble so that he could regroup in peace. Danny and Sam used the time they had to remove the remaining pieces of glass from Danny's back before they tried breaching the shield so they could finish the job, but it the shield was too strong. Once Dan felt he had a sufficient amount of energy, he explosively burst from his bubble. The explosion sent the heroes hurtling through the air before they corrected themselves. Thinking that it was either now or never, Dan cocked him head back and took a deep breath, preparing to let out his Ghostly Wail. Danny saw this coming and immediately took a deep breath to counter Dan's Ghostly Wail with his own.

"You might want to stand back," Danny advised Sam before letting out his Ghostly Wail and not a minute too soon as Dan let out his Ghostly Wail at the same time.

The massive sound waves collided and another beam of war type struggle ensued. For what seemed like an eternity, both Danny and Dan seemed evenly matched. Every once and a while, it seemed like momentum would shift in one side's favor only for the other to turn the tides once again. Danny and Dan both had sweat dripping down their forehead determined not give any their enemy even a single inch. Things took a turn for the worse when it seemed like Dannhad gained the definitive advantage as his Ghostly Wail began to overtake Danny's. Taking a chance, Sam managed to sneak up behind Dan and hit him with the most powerful blast she could muster, causing Dan to wince and lose his focus, along with the beam of war.

"Goddamn you!" Dan yelled as Danny's Ghostly Wail began to rapidly overtake his.

Despite his best efforts, Dan couldn't regain the advantage or keep up his own Ghostly Wail, allowing Danny to pound him into the ground with his Ghostly Wail. Danny didn't let up, continuing to use his Ghostly Wail on Dan, keeping him pinned to the ground and helpless against the assault. Danny kept up the attack until he had powered down back into his human form from exhaustion. Dan was lying motionless in a crater, completely and utterly defeated while Sam came to Danny's side.

Phantom launched his death ball at the heroes, who had to move quickly in order to avoid being crushed. The death ball ended taking out a bunch of buildings behind them, reducing them to mere piles of rubble in almost an instant. Tucker's injured leg ended up slowing him down, making it harder for him to maneuver out of the way, even with his hover board. This subsequently forced Dan and Valerie to assist him, slowing them down as well. Being a giant ball compiled of metal, glass, chrome, bricks, and other assorted debris, it didn't exactly roll to a stop and kept rolling, requiring Phantom to telekinetically grab and throw it again. Once again, Dan, Tucker, and Valerie had to outrun the death ball before making a quick cut to either the left or right to avoid being crushed. The death ball ended up taking out another ten buildings.

"Strike!" Phantom laughed before picking up the death ball and hurling it at the trio again.

"Okay! This is getting a little tiresome!" Dan said as he charged up a huge blast. Once he had enough power, Dan turned around and completely destroyed the death ball with the blast, sending pieces of it flying everywhere.

"Damnit, you're no fun at all!" Phantom said, turning intangible to avoid the pieces of his death ball raining from the sky. Phantom then heard a loud screech that he instantly recognized as The Ghostly Wail. "Hmm?" Phantom asked, turning his head in the direction of the Ghostly Wail. In the distance, he saw Danny and his former host locked in combat, using their Ghostly Wail to devastating yet equal effect. Sensing that Dan might soon need his help, he turned to Dan, Tucker, and Valerie and said with a sinister smile "I hope you don't mind, but I need to check up on a friend. Don't worry, I'll be right back!"

Dan grabbed Phantom by his shoulder and yanked him around, saying "Oh no you don't!"

"Gosh, you guys can be so clingy sometimes!" Phantom said, pushing Dan aside before using his telekinesis to grab a steel I beam and wrap it around Dan, Tucker, and Valerie to restrain them. Feeling that that wouldn't be enough to keep them out of his business long enough, Phantom grabbed other remnants of his death ball and began encasing the trio in a metallic sphere. Phantom piled on even more debris until he was sure that the three would have a hard time getting out of the makeshift prison ball. Just to be on the safe side, Phantom tossed the prison sphere into one of the craters that had been created from their battle and piled on tons of dirt, burying the trio underground. Figuring that that would at least keep the three busy for at least five minutes, Phantom said "Now you all just sit there and wait patiently, I'll be back in a flash!" Phantom turned back in the direction of the battle between Dan and Danny only to see Danny dominating Dan with his Ghostly Wail. Giving only a small grin and shaking his head with his hand on his forehead like a disappointed parent, Phantom sighed and said "I told him not to fuck up," before heading off to give his former host a hand.

When Phantom arrived on the scene, Dan was lying motionless on the ground, looking completely broken while Danny and Sam were on their knees in their human forms. Taking advantage of the situation, Phantom ambushed the lovebirds with a blast to their midsections, sending them sliding across the ground. While the couple were down, Phantom approached Dan, who was struggling to stand to his feet.

"Looks like you could use some help," Phantom said with a smirk.

"I don't need your help," Dan grunted, moving to push Phantom aside.

"Really, because it looks to me like you were a few seconds away from being destroyed," Phantom said, still having a shit eating grin on his face, the situation being almost exactly the same as Phantom's first meeting with Dan, only with the roles reversed. The irony wasn't lost on either Dan or Phantom, the latter of whom decided to further rub salt in Dan's wounds. "What was that you said to me when we first met? Something about using your power too hastily without restraint and it coming back to haunt you?" Phantom gloated, taking a moment to chuckle. "Look at you, you can barely summon enough strength to stand!"

"The only difference is that I didn't use my power too hastily," Dan retorted. "I had the battle completely in hand before that bitch attacked me from behind at a crucial moment. It took two of them to defeat me while, if my memory serves correctly, you were beaten solely by past self."

The grin disappeared from Phantom's face who could only reply "FUCK YOU!". Calming down a bit, Phantom continued "Listen, we don't have time to argue! The lovebirds are going to be up and about soon and our pathetic other self, the techno geek, and the amateur ghost hunter won't be down for long either!"

"Wait, you mean you couldn't even manage to kill our Boy Scout counterpart, Tucker, and Valerie?" Dan asked.

"I had to hurry over here to help your ass out!" Phantom replied. "Now hurry up before it's too late! With our combined power, there's no way the brats will be able to defeat us!"

Smiling mischievously, Dan turned intangible and jumped into Phantom, both laughing maniacally as their powers combined. Danny and Sam woke up just in time to see the two ghosts merging together while Dan, Tucker, and Valerie had managed to escape their prison and arrived just in time as well.

"This just isn't our lucky day," Valerie noted before the two ghosts finished their fusion.

"Now that that's finished…" Dan said, pausing for a moment to take a look at the heroes' faces and let the moment sink in. Unlike the previous fusions where Dan had clearly been the dominant persona, this time it appeared as if both Dan and Phantom's minds had equal control over the body as evidenced by the deep, creepy Legion-esque voice that was an amalgamation of both their voices, that Dan now possessed. Dan picked up from where he trailed and declared "I'LL CRUSH YOU!" Dan then launched into an attack, going specifically after Danny and Sam first. "Since you two gave us the most trouble and are our biggest threats, it only seems fitting that you two be the first to die!"

Danny and Sam tried to stay out of Dan's way, but with his increased speed, Dan was easily able to keep up with them, appearing right before the duo's eyes and backhanding them. Dan then drove his knee into Sam's chest while simultaneously elbowing Danny in the face. Dan grabbed a floating TV screen out of the sky and bashed both Danny and Sam in the head with it, shattering the screen to pieces, electrocuting the couple, and cutting their heads open in the process. Dan followed up with by scorching the two with his flames before kicking them so hard they crashed through several buildings. The last building ended up collapsing on them, but Danny and Sam still managed to pull themselves from the rubble, wounded, but still willing to fight despite the odds. Tucker, Valerie, and Dan all tried diverting Dan's attention from the lovebirds by blasting him but Dan shrugged off all of their attacks. His primary goal right now was to inflict as much pain as possible on the two and right now he was succeeding.

"You'll all get your turn in a minute, now fuck off!" Dan yelled at the three while he continued to ignore their attacks.

As Danny and Sam staggered slowly to their feet, holding onto each other to keep themselves standing, Dan shot another blast at them. The couple were so tired that all they could do was go intangible to avoid the blast. Dan flew towards at at max speed and nailed the two with a ferocious punch to their stomachs, causing the two to cough up blood. And still, the two stood up, knowing that they had to find a way to defeat this monster.

Unable to watch their friends get beaten so savagely, Dan, Valerie, and Tucker all phahcially jumped in to stop Dan before he killed the couple. Dan grabbed Dan from behind in a full nelson, but Dan grabbed him by the back of his head and tossed him into an incoming Valerie. Showing no fear Tucker slashed at Dan with his katana, but Dan caught the blade and broke the weapon in two. He followed up by head butting Tucker so hard that he flew backwards. Dan then moved behind Dan and let off a a fiery blast to the back of his head. Finishing off the trio, Dan charged at Valerie and kicked her in the liver. After getting back up from the kick, Valerie showed no signs of it affecting her before suddenly collapsing to the ground, clutching her torso in pain. With those three neutralized for now, Dan turned his attention back to Danny and Sam.

"Now that they're out of the way, we can pick up where we left off," Dan said, floating back over to the pair. Despite being battered, bruised, and burned with blood running down their forehead and clouding their vision, both halfas gestured for Dan to bring it on. Dan chuckled and said "You know, this is usually the part where I admit I have some sort of respect for you for your resolve or your heroic willpower, but that couldn't be even further from the truth. I truly, utterly hate your guts _because_ of your unwillingness to give up! If you two want me to "bring it", I'll happily oblige!"

Dan did indeed bring it as he immediately punished the two with unforgiving punches, elbows, kicks, forearms, and head butts. Danny and Sam tried fighting back, but Dan caught every punch they threw, deflected every blast they shot, melted every icicle thrown by Danny, and shredded every plant summoned by Sam. Finally, Danny and Sam slipped into unconsciousness and reverted to their human forms, lying in pools of their own blood. Before Dan could even consider delivering the finishing shot, he was slammed to the side by Dan, knocking Dan to the side.

"Did you forget about us?" Dan asked as he used his head as a battering ram to bring Dan to his knees.

"No, I was just hoping that I could kill them without having to worry about a "Big Damn Heroes" moment," Dan replied, punching Dan in the face before having his head almost crushed when Tucker and Valerie both flew their hover boards into the sides of his head. After shaking his head, Dan yelled "Will you all just fuck off for 2 minutes?! That's all I ask!"

The trio worked hard to keep Dan distracted, making sure to cut off the maniac anytime he made a move towards Danny and Sam. They avoided attacking him as they knew their attacks would only be a minor inconvenience for him at best. Their actions paid off as it allowed Danny and Sam to regain consciousness. Sam struggled for a few minutes, trying to use her healing touch to repair the damage both her and Danny's bodies. Sam knew she had to master this ability either now or never as otherwise, they wouldn't even be able to stand, let alone challenge Dan. Closing her eyes, Sam concentrated and finally managed to pull it off. She healed Danny's injuries first, which took a slightly longer than the first time she used the ability. Once Danny was mostly healed (or at least healed to the point where he could put up a decent fight), Sam handed him her Ring of Rage. Danny, understandably was a bit hesitant to put it on in conjunction with the Crown.

"At this point, it's our only other option," Sam said, looking Danny in the eye as if pleading with him.

"What about you?" Danny asked, not exactly jumping at the chance to leave his injured girlfriend behind to fight his homicidal other self.

"I'll be fine," Sam assured him, giving a weak smile as she ignored the white hot pain tearing through her body. "Now go, I'll catch up with you in a minute,"

Danny nodded and put on both the Crown and the Ring, instantly becoming reenergized in the process. Danny knew how to better control the increase in power, he still knew he'd use the time he had wisely and quickly. And so, Danny flew off to finally (for real this time) finish the conflict between him and Dan, although he kept his eyes on Sam the entire time to make sure she actually was okay. As soon as Danny was out of eyesight, Sam coughed up a little more blood and grabbed her midsection again before focusing in order to heal her own injuries. Dan's eyes lit up when Danny reentered the fracas, swatting the others aside like they were pieces of trash.

"Back for more?" Dan asked, his joking demeanor making it all the more apparent that Phantom's consciousness was currently dominant. "Where's the Missus? She's going to miss out on all the fun! Perhaps I'll have to pay her a visit when I'm done with you!"

Danny didn't waste any time with small talk or one liners and went straight to work, surprising Dan with a sudden punch to the face, which sent Dan flying backwards at high speed. Danny used his speed to appear behind Dan and ram his knee into the back of his head. Taking note of Danny's increased speed and strength, Dan suddenly noticed the blood red aura surrounding him. Then Dan took a closer look and realized that Danny was wearing the Crown of Fire and the Ring of Rage and his eyes widened. Dan's serious persona quickly took back over, not going to let Danny capitalize, but not before Phantom's side let out one more wisecrack.

"Seriously, how did I fail a spot check and manage to miss those?" Phantom asked. "I mean I can understand the ring, but the crown? It's a fucking crown! Even if it's small, I should still notice it atop his head!"

"The reason you can miss something so obvious is because you're an idiot, now shut up!" Dan replied, taking the helms.

"I see you've the Ghost King's jewelry on you," Dan shouted as he tried catching Danny off guard with a fireball to the face. Danny's heightened reflexes allowed him to easily evade the attack. Even as he taunted, Dan didn't stop fighting, countering Danny's attempt at a kick with a knee to the jaw. Danny wasn't deterred and retaliated with a roundhouse kick to the side of Dan's head. "Even with those toys, I'll still break you like a toothpick!"

Dan went for a punch to Danny's temple, only for Danny to catch his fist and begin crushing it in his own. Dan cried out and raised his free hand, bringing it crashing down on the top of Danny's head, causing the latter to relinquish the death grip he had on Dan's hand. For the first time in actual combat, Danny felt more powerful than whatever threat was at hand. The strike to the top of the head from Dan briefly left Danny dazed but it was clear to everyone that Danny was finally firmly in control of the situation. There was no staff around to be abused and used to grant second chances, there was no other version of Dan present that Dan could quickly and easily fuse with to increase his own strength, Dan didn't have the Wacky Watch he could use to freeze time, he was truly down to his last leg.

The power surging through Danny's body was intoxicating. He wanted to feel this strong all the time, to always be the one in control rather than constantly having to struggle. The adrenaline pumping through his veins was one thing, but the feeling of having someone completely at your mercy felt like Nirvana. Now Danny could see why Vlad wanted these artifacts so badly and why Dan was such a sadist. Danny quickly shook the thoughts out of his head, so as not to get drunk with power and waste valuable time. Dan tried to follow up while Danny was stunned with a sudden eye beam, but Danny deflected it. Dan was fully prepared for that action however, and sucker punched Danny while he was busy defending himself from the attack. Dan tried grabbing Danny with his telekinesis and paralyze him, but to Dan's shock, Danny easily broke free of his grasp.

"How did he do that!?" Dan asked, Phantom's personality taking control for the moment, unable to believe his eyes. "No one has ever broken free of my psychokinesis!" Dan was so surprised that he didn't even try to block an energy charged punch from Danny. _"Don't just stand there like a deer in the headlights, you idiot!" Dan chastised Phantom before taking control once again._

Dan furiously fired an ectoblast at Danny, only to find he had shot at an afterimage. He didn't have much time to be surprised as Danny instantly appeared behind him and delivered an almost spine severing kick that would've killed another person. Dan let out a strangled yell and be turned around, trying to retaliate, but saw nothing. He was then hit from behind with a kick to his head. Dan was hammered with hits and kicks from every direction as he struggled, trying to catch sight of Danny.

While Danny was taking care of Dan, Sam had healed herself and was now tending to everyone else's injuries. Noticeably, her healing touch seemed slightly less effective on normal humans. It still fixed any internal or external injuries, but the person would still have to take measures to keep from reinjuring themselves. Right now, she was healing Tucker's leg, repairing what turned out to be a torn MCL and Meniscus.

"That's a nifty little trick," Tucker said, expressing his gratitude as stretched his leg out and did a couple of hops to test out his knee and make sure it was safe to walk on.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you, Tuck," Sam advised him. "Since you don't have a healing factor, I don't know just how durable your knee is,"

"Well, it seems like Danny's not having any problems taking out Dan," Dan observed, watching the battle with his arms crossed and a smile on his face. "Do you think we should maybe give him a hand?"

"I don't know, he seems to have this fight in the bag right now," Valerie said. "No need in possibly get in the way,"

Dan was getting his ass handed to him on a silver platter, mostly because Danny was moving far too fast for him to see. Danny should've known though, that a cornered rat always put up a fight. Dan used his pyrokinesis to form a fire shield around him, which only appeared as an inconspicuous red aura to anyone who was looking. When Danny continued using his speed to take Dan off guard with swift punches, he got a nasty surprise and ended up scorching his hand. Danny withdrew quickly, but not quickly enough as Dan grabbed him by his wrist.

Dan quickly grabbed Danny's other wrist and with one hand spread his flames down one side of Danny's body and with the other electrocuted Danny. Danny screamed and tried pulling away, but Dan held tight. Determined to break free, Danny formed an icicle on the sole of his boot and kicked Dan in his left eye. Dan growled and swiftly dropped Danny to the ground, grabbing at his eye, or at least where his eye used to be. Now in its place was a weird, swirling mass of ectoplasm with liquid ectoplasm dripping from it. Danny took a moment to recover and decided to finally put an end to the battle. Taking a deep breath, Danny unleashed his most powerful Ghostly Wail yet, the shockwaves being so great that they cause the earth to tremble and completely destroyed any buildings in the vicinity. The attack was so powerful that Sam and Dan were forced to throw up a shield around the entire group to avoid being harmed. Danny kept Dan pinned to the ground with the attack, not letting up for even a second. Dan futilely tried to raise his hand to launch an attack, but when that failed, attempted to counter with his own Ghostly Wail, but that failed as well. Danny kept up the Ghostly Wail as long as he could before running out of steam. Amazingly, he didn't return to his human form afterwards and still felt like he had loads of energy to spare. Even more amazing was the fact that Dan had somehow managed to survive the intense attack, but just barely. The Ghostly Wail had taken a huge toll on him, as Dan's right arm was completely gone from the elbow down, his left ear had disintegrated to an almost stub, and his chest was missing a couple of chunks. Defiant and having far too much pride to give up, Dan rose to his feet and weakly staggered towards Danny.

"I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!" Dan screamed, pathetically lunging at Danny one more time. Danny simply smiled and shook his head dismissively before firing off a massive red blast, destroying what was left of Dan. "I'LL BE BACK!" Dan screamed, the voices of two phantoms that comprised him echoing in the background, as he was painfully ripped apart molecule by molecule.

Afterwards, all that was left of Dan was a puddle of ectoplasmic goo. Not wanting to take the chance and thinking there was no such thing as being too safe, Danny froze Dan's remains before reducing it to vapors with one more blast. There was nothing but silence for a couple of minutes, as Danny stood still for a couple of minutes while Sam floated beside him and Dan, Tucker, and Valerie landed behind him. They were just as silent, all of them waiting for something unexpected to happen, so used to the sudden twists. Finally, after several awkward minutes, Tucker was the first to speak.

"So, is it finally over?" Tucker asked.

"I think so," Danny said, handing the Ring back over to Sam and reverting to his human form. Sam then flew over to where the couple had hidden Clockwork's staff and retrieved the artifact.

"About time, it feels like we've been fighting for an eternity," Valerie said.

After a few more moments of awkward silence, Valerie said "So, I guess all's well that ends well, right?"

"THIS CITY'S BEEN FUCKING DESTROYED!" Tucker almost immediately replied in a half joking manner while pointing to the remains of Neo Amity Park.

"So what are we going to do about that?" Dan asked, pointing behind him to what was left of Neo Amity Park, which as if on cue, collapsed in an explosion of dust and smoke.

"It's a good thing we have this," Danny said before using Clockwork's staff to restore the city to its original state.

"Now that that's taken care of, we can go back to our timeline," Sam said. "I think it's safe to say we'll never forget about this experience."

"Tell me about it," Tucker said, powering down out of his power armor, which resembled war torn battle gear. "Thank goodness this is finally over, I don't know how much longer we could've lasted had Danny not donned the crown and the ring near the end,"

Danny then used Clockwork's staff to open up a portal.

"Hey, don't forget to drop me off," Dan reminded them. "I have my own version of Amity Park to look after,"

Dan gave a heartfelt farewell to our heroes upon being dropped off in his home timeline, saying that just getting to hang out with his friends again like before the nasty burger incident made everything more than worth it. Needing to get back home themselves, Danny opened another portal to take them back home. As the four travelled through the wormhole, Sam still had one lingering question.

"Danny?" She said, tapping on his shoulder to get his attention.

"What's the matter, Sam?" Danny asked, noticing her curious expression.

"Earlier when we were traveling outside of time and space, you said that you were certain we hadn't been wiped from existence altogether and I noticed you blushing" Sam said before asking "What made you so sure?"

"Because," Danny said, smiling warmly at Sam before pulling her in for an embrace. "I saw two events in our lives that made it impossible for us to have been erased from existence,"

"And those two events were?" Sam asked.

"The day of our marriage," Danny said, planting a kiss on Sam's lips. "And the birth of our first child,"

Danny, Sam, Tucker, and Valerie squinted their eyes as they saw the light at the end of the portal rapidly approaching. In the blink of an eye, they were back in their home dimension and standing in Clockwork's Clock Tower. Clockwork was sitting back nonchalantly, reading a book, expecting the arrival of the protagonists. Clockwork bookmarked the page he was reading, changing to his elderly form, and said "Right on time,"

"Who is this guy?" Valerie asked, unfamiliar with the time ghost.

"My name is Clockwork and despite what Danny's evil doppelgänger told you, I am the true Master of Time," Clockwork said, changing to his child form.

"I believe you'd like this back," Danny said, presenting the artifact back to its rightful owner.

"Thank you for getting this back," Clockwork said. "I must give credit where credit is due, you all did a very good job at taking down Dan, including some very clever uses of the Wacky Watch,"

"How did you?" Danny started to ask.

"I was watching you all the entire time," Clockwork revealed, changing back to his adult form. "I even gave you a helping hand when you needed it, such as when Dan left three of you stranded in one timeline with no way of following him,"

"That was you?!" Tucker asked in shock. "But how did you manage to-"

"I'm the Master of Time, you didn't really think I relied solely on this staff," Clockwork replied.

"So if you saw everything, why didn't you just stop time and recapture Dan with the Fenton Thermos?" Sam asked.

"Allow me to explain everything," Clockwork said, changing back to his child form. "Dan's escape was bound to happen sooner or later, and I knew he would immediately go after Danny for revenge. Meanwhile, there were two other timelines where Dan existed that were created as a result of my "cheating". In one timeline, Dan was still a hero, although a borderline sociopathic one who was at risk of giving in to the evil inside him and turning back to villainy. In the other timeline, Dan had decided to train for ten years rather than mindlessly destroy anything in his wake and progressively became more and more unhinged. I needed to either show Dan of what he could become to prevent him from becoming evil or destroy him outright, and I needed to destroy the crazier Dan before he became a threat to his universe. With this timeline's Dan, free I decided to kill two birds with one stone and with a good choice of words, manipulated him into exploring other timelines, knowing you'd follow behind him to stop him. In the process, the good Dan would see the monster he risked becoming and the lunatic Dan would be destroyed. As for why I didn't just step in and take care of all three Dans myself, my direct interference wth this timeline's events lead to their creation in the first place. Getting involved with this matter would undoubtably have similar consequences,"

"But another timeline's Danny and his parents ended up being killed as well," Tucker pointed out. "Why couldn't you prevent their deaths?"

Clockwork simply snapped his fingers and restored that timeline back to normal before continuing, shifting into adult form. "What you all must understand is that our timeline is the basis for every other timeline and alternate universe. If Dan were to succeed in his plan to conquer time and space, the consequences could've been the collapse of time itself and the destruction of all forms of life (or unlife). I can assure you that almost everything that happened today was foreseen by me and most likely a part of my plan,"

"So you're saying we were never in any real danger at all?" Valerie asked.

"No," Clockwork said sternly. "As Danny can attest to, time is not set in stone and even things that I'd foreseen could've played out differently. In our case, we're fortunate that events played out as intended."

Danny and Sam could only give Clockwork a blank stare of confusion, occasionally blinking, as they tried to wrap their head around what had just been explained to them. They ultimately decided not to give themselves a headache thinking too hard about it and got ready to return to Amity Park, when Danny's phone rang. Looking at the caller ID and seeing that it was Danielle, Danny immediately answered his phone.

"Hello?" He said.

"There you are, where have you guys been?" Dani asked. "I've been trying to get in contact with you guys all day! What happened?"

"It's a crazy story," Danny explained. "We'll explain everything later, is everything okay?"

"We've got a bit of a problem," Dani replied.

"What kind of problem?" Danny asked in response before heading another voice that he didn't expect nor want to hear for a very long time.

"A kind of problem that we're the cause of and that threatens to destroy us all," Vlad said.

**In the Next Chapter: **

_**"Jonathan? What are you doing here?" Dani asked, getting Jonathan's attention and startling him. Jonathan's skeleton would've jumped out of his skin if he still had one. "Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you."**_

_**"Oh, it's no problem, young princess" Jonathan replied before remembering why he had come there and asking "Where are his and her Majesty? I have important news that I need to discuss with them right now."**_

_**"They're in school at the moment, and they won't be getting out for another… two hours" Dani informed him, looking down at her wristwatch.**_

_**"Oh yes, with all the work they do fighting ghosts and looking over the ghost zone, it's a bit easy to forget at times that they're still teenagers," Jonathan laughed before getting serious again and saying "But this is something that can't wait; his and her majesty need to hear this news as soon as possible."**_

_**"Well I am their daughter, maybe I can relay the information to them," Dani offered. **_

_**"Very well, but this is something that needs to be seen," Jonathan told her. "Come with me!" **_

_**Going through the Fenton Portal, Jonathan escorted Danielle to the royal palace and flew with urgency. Jonathan was flying so fast that Dani was actually struggling to keep up with the messenger, letting her know that whatever the issue was truly was as important as Jonathan made it out to be. That, along with her earlier encounter with the tragedy ghost woman, gave Dani a feeling that something bad, either a catastrophe or a huge conflict, was incoming. Once the two had arrived at the castle, Jonathan lead Dani to the castle's vast library. Pulling a seemingly random book off of one of the shelves Jonathan opened it up and gestured for Dani to sit down so he could fully explain what was going**_ _**on.**_

**And another storyline is in the books. As you can see, this is my longest chapter to date and it's going to be pretty difficult to top myself. Like some writers, I like to listen to music while I write, and sometimes that shows. The song I was listening to was "What I'm Made Of" by Crush 40 and for some reason it just seemed to fit, but I'm getting off topic. I'll be honest, I worried about this arc dragging its feet and possibly going on too long, sometimes struggling to figure out how to follow up to certain chapters, but I didn't give up. Dan (at least the evil one) is gone for good. As I was writing this chapter, I debated whether I should kill Dan off or have Danny send him to The Void in case I wanted to maybe bring him back later on, but ultimately decided to kill him off. If I need to use the evil Dan in the future, I'm pretty sure I can find a way to bring him back. Anyways, with Danny's future self (and his alternate universe counterparts) taken care of, what's next for our heroes? What's been going on while Team Phantom's been traveling through different timelines and universes? What's the big trouble waiting for Team Phantom when they get back home and what role is Vlad going to play in these events? You'll have to wait a little while to find out as the next few chapters (at least 6-7) are going to focus on what Dani was doing while the others were gone. However, these chapters will answer a few of these questions so be sure to stay tuned. As always, I've been your gracious host Timothy D (a.k.a. Edgar Amadeus Vercetti, a.k.a. Peter Nasir, a.k.a. Jack Moxley, a.k.a. The Man of 1001 Names/Aliases/Pseudonyms, a.k.a… Mr. A.K.A a.k.a. well, you get the idea) and as always, have a great day and peace out!**

**A/N: The next update will be October 28.**


	34. A New Threat

**God Save the Queen Chapter 33: A New Threat Arises**

Since Danny and Sam had their first day of school today, Danielle took it upon herself to look after Amity Park while they were busy. Sure, they'd only be in school for eight hours and their teachers would probably be more than happy to let them leave class early if trouble arose, but Dani thought it would be a better idea to keep an eye over the town and prevent any trouble from happening. Besides, a lot could happen in eight hours. Today however seemed like it was going to be a long, slow, boring day. The first hour, Dani sat around at FentonWorks, waiting for something to happen, while helping Jack and Maddie invent and test some new gadgets. Dani spent the second hour talking to Jazz, getting some wise sisterly advice from the psychology major. While this did keep her occupied, it didn't take long for Dani to grow bored. During the third hour, Dani did a patrol of the town, praying for a random ghost attack to happen. She decided that she'd leave any crime such as robbery or carjacking to the police unless they couldn't handle the situation. When the fourth hour rolled around, Danielle was so bored, she was willing to fight any ghost at all, even if it was the Box Ghost (whether he be his dopey, harmless self or the ruthless Amity Park Butcher). By the fifth hour, however, Dani was actively looking for trouble, any trouble at all. She'd even be willing to deal with a random pickpocket if it alleviated the dullness of the day. Dani figured that since Danny and Sam had defeated Vlad's rebel forces and with three halfas to deal with, ghosts were more reluctant to attack. With three hours left in the day, Dani considered attempting duplication and then fighting her clone for a little fun. Dani thought that maybe she should've looked into enrolling in school before she remembered that that wouldn't work since she didn't have any proof of her existence as the only identification she had was likely destroyed with Vlad's lab in Wisconsin. Dani made a quick mental reminder to ask her parents about that. Just as Dani was about to give up completely, a green blur whizzed past her so fast she briefly spun in circles.

"Well it's about time!" Dani exclaimed, turning and giving chase after the ghost. "Hey you, stop right there!"

The ghost completely ignored her and continued going on its way. Strangely, the ghost didn't try to attack Dani either, instead seeming to be in a rush. As Dani caught up with the ghost, she noticed that the ghost was a wiry, cloaked figure wearing a tragedy mask carrying a thick book. Even though she couldn't see through the mask, Dani could tell that there was a sense of urgency and panic in the ghost's actions. Almost completely certain that the ghost wasn't a threat, Dani tried getting them to slow down so she could ask what was troubling it.

"Hey! Slow down, I'm not going to hurt you!" Dani yelled after the ghost, who headed into Amity Park's business district, weaving and swerving in between and sometimes through skyscrapers, not stopping for anything. "Just tell me what's going on!"

The ghost acknowledged Dani for the first time and saying "There's no time to explain. Just save yourself and get out of here before it's too late!" The ghost's voice sounded distinctly feminine and had that same sense of urgency displayed by her body language.

"What are you talking about?" Dani asked as she finally caught up to the ghost and caught her by her shoulder, causing the ghost to drop her book. The ghost immediately broke free of Dani's grip to retrieve her book. When the ghost tried fleeing again, Dani grabbed hold of her and refuses to let go until she got some answers.

"No! Let go of me!" The ghost yelled, struggling and thrashing like a madwoman.

"Not until you tell me what's going on and has you so up in arms," Dani said causing the ghost to give in.

"Very well," The Ghost conceded, calming down long enough to explain what was going on. "A great evil has been freed and now the entire ghost zone is at risk! I fled the Ghost Zone while he is still relatively docile, but that won't last long. If this evil manages to escape for is world, we're all done for! If he isn't soon returned to his prison, you'll soon discover the reason for my panic!"

With that, the ghost disappeared, leaving Dani behind, who could only look around in confusion. Not knowing what to make of the ghost's rambling, Dani returned to FentonWorks, again reduced to waiting for another conflict. Still, the ghost's words rang endlessly in her head as she sat around. Dani went upstairs into Danny's room and found Danny and Sam's loyal head guard and general deliverer of news, Jonathan, anxiously pacing back and forth as if waiting for Danny to arrive.

"Jonathan? What are you doing here?" Dani asked, getting Jonathan's attention and startling him. Jonathan's skeleton would've jumped out of his skin if he still had one. "Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you."

"Oh, it's no problem, young princess" Jonathan replied before remembering why he had come there and asking "Where are his and her Majesty? I have important news that I need to discuss with them right now."

"They're in school at the moment, and they won't be getting out for another… two hours" Dani informed him, looking down at her wristwatch.

"Oh yes, with all the work they do fighting ghosts and looking over the ghost zone, it's a bit easy to forget at times that they're still teenagers," Jonathan laughed before getting serious again and saying "But this is something that can't wait; his and her majesty need to hear this news as soon as possible."

"Well I am their daughter, maybe I can relay the information to them," Dani offered.

"Very well, but this is something that needs to be seen," Jonathan told her. "Come with me!"

Going through the Fenton Portal, Jonathan escorted Danielle to the royal palace and flew with urgency. Jonathan was flying so fast that Dani was actually struggling to keep up with the messenger, letting her know that whatever the issue was truly was as important as Jonathan made it out to be. That, along with her earlier encounter with the tragedy ghost woman, gave Dani a feeling that something bad, either a catastrophe or a huge conflict, was incoming. Once the two had arrived at the castle, Jonathan lead Dani to the castle's vast library. Pulling a seemingly random book off of one of the shelves Jonathan opened it up and gestured for Dani to sit down so he could fully explain what was going on.

"As the King and Queen's head guard, I'm required to be knowledgeable of nearly every aspect of the Ghost Zone's history," Jonathan said. "Many millennia ago, there was a ghost known only as Ira that terrorized the Ghost Zone. Ira was a violent, vicious, volatile villain of a ghost."

"Was this anything like Pariah Dark's reign of terror?" Dani asked.

"No, according to the texts and the Observants' account it was much much worse," Jonathan said. "At least Pariah's rampant destruction served a purpose, however twisted it may have been. Ira was simply an almost feral creature bent on causing as much mayhem as possible for either his own amusement or just because he could. Destruction and death seemed to be the only things it knew. And it didn't end in just the Ghost Zone as Ira committed many atrocities on Earth as well, killing thousands of humans and corrupting a more than few of them with his mere presence. The threat posed by Ira was so great that it was one of very few times that the Observants were allowed to get directly involved with a conflict. Did you know there were originally more Observants than the 200 that there are now?" Dani shook her head. "The reason for this is that many Observants ended up dying trying to take down the savage ghost. No matter what they tried, nothing could keep Ira down permanently. Eventually, the Observants managed to place Ira in a deep slumber and imprisoned him in a specially crafted tomb designed specifically to hold and keep him locked away."

"Why are you telling me all of this?" Dani asked, having a sneaking suspicion to what Jonathan was alluding to.

Jonathan then revealed a touch screen TV like monitor, which showed remnants of a small, destroyed temple like tomb. A few royal guards and two of the Observants were surveying the damage, inspecting the ruins to see if the tomb had imploded and further trapped its inhabitant or if the thing they were trying to keep inside it had escaped. It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that the tomb was the aforementioned prison for the Ira being that Jonathan was talking about.

"Those ruins you see on screen are the remains of Ira's prison. That tomb had been used to keep that savage beast locked away for over 150,000 years," Jonathan explained. Approximately one week ago, a few guards on duty noticed that the prison had been destroyed, but initially we thought nothing of it until a couple of mysterious, random attacks on denizens of the Ghost Zone were reported. We figured that the old crumbling architecture had finally given away after so many thousands of years of erosion with no maintenance."

"With all due respect, why didn't anyone think to fix up or reinforce Ira's tomb every so often to prevent the possibility of its erosion from happening?" Dani asked. "If Ira was a threat on par with Pariah Dark, one would think that taking all measures to keep him imprisoned would be a top priority."

"Well there are three most likely reasons for the tomb being ignored for so long. Part of the problem is that as time went on, the memory of Ira faded from the memory of the Ghost Zone's residents and the humans in turn, immortalized him in myths and legends that were lost to time," Jonathan said. "The second reason is that with not many left to remember the terror Ira unleashed, the Observants no longer being allowed to interfere in the matter (since it was assumed that the the problem was taken care of), and the ones who were informed of Ira such as myself having other duties, the temple was left to slowly decay and waste away. And the third most commonly accepted reason is that whenever the guards and myself did have time to potentially fix up the old prison, we chose not to out of fear of accidentally awaking and freeing Ira in the process."

Dani took a closer look at the tomb and noticed that it seemed awfully familiar. Dani took a look at the background and suddenly recognized the island housing it. The island was part of the archipelago where Danny and Vlad had had their climactic battle two weeks ago. Since she also took part in the fight, Dani felt a pang of guilt over possibly being partially responsible for freeing an ancient evil.

"So has the search turned up anything?" Dani asked and Jonathan shook his head.

"There's been no indication that Ira is still locked or if he's escaped," Jonathan said before turning around quickly as Dani turned and made a break for the exit. "Wait a minute, where are you going, your highness?"

"I'm going to go give the royal guards a hand and see if I can find any sign of this Ira being," Dani answered. "I already know where his tomb's located so I shouldn't be gone long. I'll let you know if I find anything noteworthy,"

"But, your highness, it's far too dangerous for you to go by yourself," Jonathan said, accompanying Dani to make sure no harm would befall her. "Please don't do anything hasty"

"I can handle myself, it shouldn't be too much trouble," Dani tried assuring him.

"Even if that's the case, I'm still the head royal guard, it's my job to well guard you and make sure nothing bad happens to you," Jonathan replied, flying after Danielle as fast as he could.

"Well if you insist," Dani said before suddenly speeding up. "Just try to keep up,"

**In the Next Chapter**:

_**Hurrying over quickly, Jonathan and Dani saw the guard pointing down into the tomb. Upon closer inspection, they saw all the prove they needed. The three caught a glance at what seemed to be the semi smashed remains of the purple coffin used to contain the violent spirit. The lid to the coffin had been knocked off its hinges. The coffin lid was heavily dented, with several fist sized impressions appearing in the seal. In some places, the metal had been broken through with splintered wood appearing in the tiny incisions. This all implied that the coffin's seal had been knocked off from the inside or at the very least a struggle from Ira. Similar to the marble ruins of the tomb, the coffin lid had a few burns on the metal reinforcements meant to keep it in place and there were signs that a sudden strong force such as a shockwave had weakened at least half of the locks in place. As for the coffin itself, its body was also heavily dented and burned, but looked like it had fared much better than the seal. Miraculously, despite almost nothing from the tomb coming out with without damage, the coffin remained bolted to the floor. Most importantly however was the fact that there was no body to be found near the coffin or anywhere in the tomb. Although the glance Dani, Jonathan, and the guard had was small, it was still more than enough to allow them to see that there was nothing else inside the tomb, leading them to the foregone conclusion that Ira had indeed escaped. The only solace came in the fact that the evidence suggested that Ira's escape wasn't as quick as initially assumed. The damage to the coffin gave the impression that while the tomb's destruction did awaken Ira from his forced hibernation, it hadn't actually freed him since he still had to escape his coffin. The dents in the lid to aforementioned coffin made it clear that the beast had been struggling for quite some time despite the explosion doing significant damage to his coffin. These signs made it likely that Ira's escape had been fairly recent, perhaps even two or three days ago.**_

**So that's the start of the third story arc. I apologize for the late update, but foolish me forgot to upload the chapter in advance. What's going to happen next? Tune in next time to find out.**


	35. A Search Begins

**God Save the Queen Chapter 34: The Search Begins**

It didn't take long for Dani and Jonathan to land at the site of the ruins, where the Royal guards were frantically digging through the rubble, slowly excavating what was left of the tomb. Beneath the chunks of stone, Dani caught glimpses of an underground burial chamber. The edges of a purple metal reinforced coffin could be seen resting within the chamber, but Dani couldn't quite tell if it was still in one piece or not. Further conflicting the matter was the fact that there were a few fragments that matched the color of the coffin lying amongst the ruins. From a certain standpoint, it looked as if the tomb have caved in on itself rather than being broken out of from the inside out or destroyed from the outside. Just as confusing was that from a certain angle, the opposite seemed to be true. However, there was more evidence in favor of the latter such as burns to the pillars which suggested that an explosion was to blame for the tomb's destruction.

"How's it coming along, have you found anything of note?" Jonathan asked the guard who seemed to be in charge of the excavation. "Is there any indication that Ira has escaped or what could've caused the destruction of his prison? Did he break out of his prison himself, was this intentional, or is natural causes the blame?"

"Sorry Sir, but we haven't found much indication as to the cause of the destruction, or if an explosion was the indeed cause, the cause of the explosion" the lead guard informed him in response to Jonathan's last 3 questions. "I regards to the prisoner however… things aren't looking very good. There's no signs of Ira to be found and the sarcophagus housing him looks to have been destroyed along with the temple."

"I see," Jonathan said, nodding solemnly before going down to assist the other guards in clearing the debris so he could find a definite answer. Dani quickly joined in, removing and tossing aside broken pillars like a child discarding their toys. Jonathan was quick to reprehend her for her hastiness. "Not so fast, your highness, we mustn't go about this too quickly until it is clear whether or not Ira is free or not. For all we know, these ruins could be the only thing keeping him secured."

"So what're we supposed to do?" Dani asked. "Just sit here on our thumbs patiently while slowly tossing aside every spec of dirt until we know for certain whether or not this Ira creature is on the loose or not. From what we've heard so far, it would be a safe assumption to assume that Ira has indeed escaped. Every second we waste is another second that Ira could be terrorizing some other ghost or even human."

"I can certainly see where you're coming from and understand your logic," Jonathan replied. "In fact, I agree that it might be more practical if we sped things along, but you have to understand that being the king and queen's guards, we have certain protocol we must follow to ensure not only the safety of them but of the Ghost Zone as a whole. Despite our lack of findings seeming to confirm our worst fears, until we've absolute concrete evidence."

"And how long will it take for us to find 'concrete evidence'?" Danielle asked, already having a bad feeling that Ira was already causing trouble elsewhere. "What exactly qualifies as 'concrete evidence'?"

"The discovery of a body or lack of," Jonathan said. "Once that is found, we can officially start hunting down this danger to anything sentient,"

Almost on cue, one of Jonathan's subordinates called over to him. "Sir, I believe you might want to see this!"

Hurrying over quickly, Jonathan and Dani saw the guard pointing down into the tomb. Upon closer inspection, they saw all the prove they needed. The three caught a glance at what seemed to be the semi smashed remains of the purple coffin used to contain the violent spirit. The lid to the coffin had been knocked off its hinges. The coffin lid was heavily dented, with several fist sized impressions appearing in the seal. In some places, the metal had been broken through with splintered wood appearing in the tiny incisions. This all implied that the coffin's seal had been knocked off from the inside or at the very least a struggle from Ira. Similar to the marble ruins of the tomb, the coffin lid had a few burns on the metal reinforcements meant to keep it in place and there were signs that a sudden strong force such as a shockwave had weakened at least half of the locks in place. As for the coffin itself, its body was also heavily dented and burned, but looked like it had fared much better than the seal. Miraculously, despite almost nothing from the tomb coming out with without damage, the coffin remained bolted to the floor. Most importantly however was the fact that there was no body to be found near the coffin or anywhere in the tomb. Although the glance Dani, Jonathan, and the guard had was small, it was still more than enough to allow them to see that there was nothing else inside the tomb, leading them to the foregone conclusion that Ira had indeed escaped. The only solace came in the fact that the evidence suggested that Ira's escape wasn't as quick as initially assumed. The damage to the coffin gave the impression that while the tomb's destruction did awaken Ira from his forced hibernation, it hadn't actually freed him since he still had to escape his coffin. The dents in the lid to aforementioned coffin made it clear that the beast had been struggling for quite some time despite the explosion doing significant damage to his coffin. These signs made it likely that Ira's escape had been fairly recent, perhaps even two or three days ago.

"Attention all elite loyal knights to the Royal Phantom Family, we have found what we were looking for!" Jonathan announced to the other knights before rephrasing his statement. "Or rather, we haven't! With it now being clear that Ira has indeed managed to escape, we shall now begin an extensive search of the Ghost Zone until we can track down this monster! Most of you shall assist in the search while the rest shall repair this temple and the coffin for when we recapture him! We cannot stop until this beast is brought back in! Closely guard all entrances to the human world until we have found him! Have I made myself clear?"

"Yes, sir!" The other knights all replied before splitting themselves up to do their respective jobs.

"So what are we going to do?" Dani asked as Jonathan went off to assist in the search for Ira.

"You're not going to do anything, your highness," Jonathan informed her. "With all due respect, young princess, I don't want you going anywhere near Ira. I want you to spread this information to your parents. The three of you are to stay away from this situation until it is taken care of,"

"You do remember that Danny defeated Pariah Dark, which everyone assumed was impossible right?" Dani reminded him. "The three of us combined should at least present a challenge to Ira,"

"Of course I remember," Jonathan replied. "It's just that most of us knew what Pariah was capable of and were witnesses to his power. With Ira, none of us have seen him in action,"

"So you plan to just launch an attack on Ira once you find him?" Dani asked. "He could easily wipe the floor with you guys for all you know. You can at least let us help you,"

"And drag the three of you to your own demises?" Jonathan retorted. "If we are destroyed by Ira, it at least gives the three of you a chance to escape and seal off the Ghost Zone."

"Do you honestly think the Phantom Family will just run away from a threat?" Dani replied. "We'll fight Ira no matter how much the odds are against us, even if it kills us!" Dani then looked at the ground and said quietly "Not to mention, it might be our fight that Ira is free in the first place."

"What are you talking about, your highness?" Jonathan asked.

"Back when we were fighting Plasmius a few weeks ago, the fight ended up moving to this group of islands," Dani explained. "At one point, Danny and Plasmius ended up on Ira's Island. Plasmius ended up slamming Danny into the ground with such force that it created a shockwave. None of us noticed anything until after the fight where we saw what looked like the remnants of a tombstone lying on the ground."

"Oh no, this is bad! No, this is terrible!" Jonathan said, looking as if he were just a few seconds away from having a panic attack. "This means that Ira's tomb had been in this state for at least three weeks, meaning he could've escaped earlier than we expected. Even worse is that no one appeared to have noticed until just now. The worst part is that this means Ira could literally be anywhere right now. The only good thing about this is that there haven't been many reported sightings of him, even though he very well could still ultimately be responsible for the recent attacks! I'll have to tell the others to double their search efforts! Why didn't you tell us any of this!?"

"We didn't know!" Dani answered. "We didn't know anything about his Ira ghost or about the tomb he was imprisoned in or where it was even located. I didn't know we had destroyed the tomb until today. Why didn't you, or Clockwork, or the Observants, tell us about Ira in the first place so we'd know to avoid that island? An ancient ghost known for causing chaos and destruction seems like something you'd let your rulers know about so they could be prepared!"

"We never… exactly expected for Ira to escape and didn't thinking briefing you all would be important," Jonathan said meekly. His face would've turned red with embarrassment if it were possible. "I suppose we both held back vital information and are at fault for this. Regardless of who is to blame for this mess, all that's important now is containing this problem before it gets too big! Hopefully, all those thousands of years he's spent in that tomb have made him weaker and easier to capture."

"Earlier you mentioned that there were a string of attacks," Dani mentioned. "Where did the most recent attack take place?"

"The last reported attack took place in the outer regions of the Ghost Zone," Jonathan said. "It's not too far out so I can take you there. Just keep in mind that if we find Ira you have no idea what you're getting into"

With that, Jonathan gestured for Dani to follow him once again. Dani, somewhat excited due to to how much Ira was said to be, didn't need to be told twice and followed closely. Sure enough, Jonathan ended up leading Dani to a part of the Ghost Zone that she'd never seen before. The zone looked like the ruins of a lost civilization you'd see in a movie or read about in a novel. Noticeably, there was also a trail of destruction as if someone had been vandalizing this place. The ruins gave Dani chills as she felt as if something could jump out and attack her at any moment. Dani quickly got a hold of herself, remembering that she was the one who asked to be brought here. So far the search for Ira was turning up fruitless as the wind whistled through the crumbling ruins. Dani wondered if this place was once Ira's domain seeing as the entity was described as being thousands of years old. Everything was eerily quiet until a large glass vase toppled onto Jonathan's head, knocking him out cold. Dani turned around quickly only to be suddenly snatched into the air.

**In The Next Chapter:**

**_"Quiet down, child!" Vlad hissed. "Believe me when I say, you don't want to meet what's responsible for the current state of this relic."_**

**_"I knew it would only be a matter of time before you came back," Dani whispered. "What are you even doing here? Did you follow us?"_**

**_"As hard as it may be to believe, the fact that we ran into each other is sheer coincidence," Plasmius replied, keeping his voice down. "What I have been following is the creature who's been wreaking havoc in the Ghost Zone as of late. I assume that you and the "King's" royal stooge are here for the same reason,"_**

**_"What makes you say that?" Dani asked, still suspicious of Vlad's intentions and wondering why she wasn't punching him in the face for all the trouble he'd caused._**

**_"Why else would you two be in this region of the Ghost Zone?" Plasmius asked in response. "This place was forgotten by time and left to rot to the point where even I didn't know it existed. If you weren't searching for the beast, then there'd be no reason for you to be here,"_**

**_"Fair enough," Dani admitted. "Now let's say I believe you when you say you weren't following us. Why were you lurking in the shadows like a serial killer stalking his next victim and why did you topple a vase onto Jonathan's head?"_**

**_"I expected that revealing myself to you so suddenly would only lead to a confrontation, especially with Daniel's bodyguard accompanying you," Vlad explained. "So I simply incapacitated him so I could explain what was going on. And since you're here, I figured I could ask for your help as well as Daniel's and Samantha's"_**

**_"You need our help specifically?" Dani responded, having heard everything now. "Now I know you're planning something"_**

**My apologies for the delay between updates. I've been dealing with personal issues and returning depression that's been taking up my time and making it harder for me to write. I apologize if the quality of this chapter seems subpar compared to previous ones because and promise the next chapter will be better. Despite still dealing with these issues, I assure you that there'll still be monthly updates. I've been Timothy D, peace out and have a nice day!**


	36. Return of the Fruitloop

**God Save The Queen Chapter 35: The Fruitloop's Back!**

Dani was suddenly snatched in the air by whatever had been lurking in the shadows. Dani expected her attacker to be this Ira creature and prepared for a fight. Instead of an aggressive, volatile spirit however, she found herself face to face with the one and only Vlad Plasmius. Dani opened her mouth to scream only for Plasmius to place his hand over her mouth. Dani quickly broke free of his grasp and prepared for a fight, but Plasmius simply tried calming her down.

"Plasmius, what are you doing here?" Dani asked, causing Vlad to try and shush her.

"Quiet down, child!" Vlad hissed. "Believe me when I say, you don't want to meet what's responsible for the current state of this relic."

"I knew it would only be a matter of time before you came back," Dani whispered. "What are you even doing here? Did you follow us?"

"As hard as it may be to believe, the fact that we ran into each other is sheer coincidence," Plasmius replied, keeping his voice down. "What I have been following is the creature who's been wreaking havoc in the Ghost Zone as of late. I assume that you and the "King's" royal stooge are here for the same reason,"

"What makes you say that?" Dani asked, still suspicious of Vlad's intentions and wondering why she wasn't punching him in the face for all the trouble he'd caused.

"Why else would you two be in this region of the Ghost Zone?" Plasmius asked in response. "This place was forgotten by time and left to rot to the point where even I didn't know it existed. If you weren't searching for the beast, then there'd be no reason for you to be here,"

"Fair enough," Dani admitted. "Now let's say I believe you when you say you weren't following us. Why were you lurking in the shadows like a serial killer stalking his next victim and why did you topple a vase onto my bodyguard's head?"

"I expected that revealing myself to you so suddenly would only lead to a confrontation, especially with Daniel's bodyguard accompanying you," Vlad explained. "So I simply incapacitated him so I could explain what was going on. And since you're here, I figured I could ask for your help as well as Daniel's and Samantha's"

"You need our help specifically?" Dani responded, having heard everything now. "Now I know you're planning something,"

"The four of us are the only ones who can stop this thing," Vlad replied. "Not to mention we're responsible for setting it free in the first place,"

"From the sound of things, it sounds like you've already encountered Ira," Dani noted.

"Obviously," Plasmius said condescendingly. "If I hadn't, I wouldn't be even be here, and I wouldn't know I needed assistance in taking down this beast." Vlad's body language convinced Danielle that he was sincere in his plea for help and that only worried her even more. If something was so powerful that even Plasmius asked for help, it must've been a threat.

"Alright, alright; we'll help you," Dani said. "But you'll have to explain everything right now,"

"Very well," Vlad said before explaining everything. "I'll start from the very beginning, immediately after my last fight with Daniel, which saw me defeated once again through sheer luck and an assist from you and Samantha." Dani quickly retorted by saying "You don't have to explain all of this to me since I was actually there, now get on with it." "Fine," Vlad huffed before continuing.

_Following what was a climactic battle between arch rivals, Plasmius was fortunate to have been able to teleport right before Daniel could deliver what would surely be a fatal blow. The brutal, barbaric, bloody brawl left both sides with serious injuries, but it was Vlad who came out in the worst condition. Following the duel, Vlad had a broken jaw, a fractured skull, several broken ribs, a punctured lung as a result of said broken ribs, a dislocated left shoulder, a broken patella, moderate internal bleeding, and a broken back, leaving him near death. Vlad was fortunate that aforementioned broken back didn't leave him paralyzed and unable to walk. That life saving last second teleportation took the very last ounce of energy Plasmius had left and as a result, made him to struggle to retain consciousness. Vlad found himself in his hidden underground laboratory that he had built just in case of emergency. Struggling to stay on his feet, Vlad weakly limped over to a chamber to beginning healing from his wounds. The chamber would serve to keep Vlad in stable condition while his healing factor repaired his damaged body. Vlad lied in that chamber for what felt like days before finally reemerging, feeling rejuvenated and stronger than before. It would still take at least a couple more days for Vlad to be completely 100%, but this was a good start. Vlad took a moment to stretch his limbs and test out his powers just to make sure he was in stable condition. The former ruler of earth then went about thinking about what he should do next. Of course he was plotting his revenge but realized it would be foolish to try again right now, but that didn't mean he couldn't try and get a head start for the next time he faced the Phantom trio. Knowing that Daniel would probably alert the Guys in White of his still functioning Ghost Portal, Vlad spent the next two days disassembling and reassembling said ghost portal at his new hideout. Once that task was complete, Vlad decided to explore the Ghost Zone to see if he could find anything that could assist him in defeating Danny Phantom in the future. Not like he had anything else to do. Strangely, his search brought him back to the same set of islands they had previously done battle on. Plasmius had no idea why he had been drawn to this location but something told him he would soon get his answer. Landing on the island where he had come the closest to slaying Daniel, Plasmius sat down on a rock and started thinking about everything that had gone wrong with his plan. First Skulker betrayed him, then even after he had managed to capture Daniel, the boy still thwarted his attempts to steal the Ring of Rage by alerting his wife and daughter of the trap Plasmius had laid for them. Even worse, even when he had both the crown and the ring, Vlad somehow still couldn't defeat Daniel in combat. The more he reflected on his failures, the angrier Plasmius became to the point where he felt close to suffering an aneurysm. Plasmius was interrupted from his thoughts when he heard a low guttural growl behind him. Turning his head, Plasmius spotted the tomb that he had destroyed during the fight and something was crawling from its remains. "Perfect," he thought to himself; he needed something to take out his anger on. Plasmius assumed that the creature was simply a lower tier ghost that he could take out with zero effort. The only problem was that it was taking forever for it to get free of its prison._

"_Well don't keep me waiting!" Plasmius yelled at the creature. "Are you going to come out of here and fight me or are you going to stay sheltered away like a moody teenager."_

_With a mighty push, the creature shoved the remnants of the tomb off of him and emerged from the hole in the ground, giving Vlad his first glance at the specter. The ghost had the appearance of an elderly man, but with long flowing black hair. The ghost was skeletally thin and veiny with what its ribcage being clearly visible, yet at the same time, appeared to have some muscle mass that gave off the impression of a pint sized powerhouse. In terms of height, the ghost was maybe an inch or so shorter than Plasmius. Its skin color was a pale, chalky gray and the ghost radiated a dark red aura. The ghost's eyes were filled with rage and had pitch black sclera that highlighted a type of mental instability and were complemented with blood red irises and scarlet colored pupils. The ghost bore razor sharp teeth and two sharp fangs that glistened when light bounced off of them. As for its attire, the ghost wore what looked like slightly torn and tattered baggy white pants with a dark grey cloth wrapped around his waist and upper legs beneath it. On its feet were tan strapped sandals and shackles around its ankles. Shackles and long chains also were also around the ghost's wrists as well, making it all too clear that the thing had been locked away for a very long time. The ghost looked up at Plasmius and hissed like a feral cat, causing Plasmius to burst into laughter._

"_Are you serious?" Plasmius asked. "I come out here for peace and quiet only to get interrupted by a savage beast? I'll make you pay for disrupting me_!"

_The ghost didn't even seem to hear Plasmius' words as it charged at him without a second thought. Plasmius simply stepped to the side and launched his knee into the creature's stomach. The blow barely seemed to register to be creature, who aside from giving a quick growl, swung at Plasmius with his fist, only for the latter to duck and deliver an uppercut to the creature's chin, followed by a leg sweep. Plasmius then grabbed the creature by its leg and slammed him repeatedly into the ground like a mallet. Plasmius tossed the ghost into the air and nailed it with an ectoblast. Much to Vlad's surprise, the ghost continued getting back up after each attack, shaking them off as if they were nothing. Thinking that the ghost would go down eventually, Plasmius continued attacking it, hitting it with a brutal flying head butt followed by continuous shots to the torso. The creature simply tanked each punch and in fact smiled as Plasmius showed signs of growing frustration. Plasmius grunted and duplicated himself, creating four copies of himself that all simultaneously attacked the creature to no avail. The creature hammered each Plasmius with strikes to the face and unleashed a volley of blasts, clearly not caring whether they hit their target or not. It was at this point that Plasmius realized what he was going up against and how dangerous the situation was. He wasn't simply going against the average run of the mill ghost, but rather just like he said, a truly savage beast. One that had no concern for its own wellbeing and just seemed intent on causing as much damage as it could. Despite this fact, Plasmius remained calm and convinced himself that with enough effort, he could eventually find a chink in the ghost's armor. Keeping his distance, Plasmius tried keeping the ghost at bay with ecto blasts whenever it tried to get close. When the ghost failed to go down to the blasts, Plasmius decided to play dirty and blasted the creature in its right eye. While the attack certainly slowed the creature down, the dirty move failed to do anything significant to the ghost besides piss it off even more as it let out a monstrous screech. The ghost charged Plasmius with murderous intent, taking anything Plasmius threw at it head on. The ghost just barely missed Plasmius when the latter move out of he way of the raving lunatic of a ghost. Plasmius clobbered the ghost in the back of the head with a double fisted blow to the back of its head. Plasmius breathed a sigh of relief when the creature actually went down to one knee from the attack._

"_I told you that you'd regret making an enemy out of me!" Vlad snarled, having regained confidence that he could win this battle and send this ghost packing_.

_The ghost didn't utter a word and growled at Plasmius, snarling like a dog at the billionaire fruit loop. It lunged for Plasmius' neck, looking to throttle him, but Plasmius was quick and, putting all of his strength into his fist, hit the ghost with a punch to the stomach that sent him flying off. Plasmius wasn't surprised when the ghost came back for more and in fact caught the ghost by his arm to deliver his ghost stinger. The electric assault rattled ghost and for the first time in the fight, actually brought him down. Satisfied, Plasmius stood over his foe to gloat._

_"What can I say? You brought this upon yourself," Plasmius laughed at his seemingly fallen opponent. He pondered whether he should try to brainwash the ghost into doing his bidding, but decided against it as most of his attempts at attaining an apprentice or henchman blew up in his face. Besides, Plasmius wanted to get his revenge by himself and on his own terms. "Hmm, although, I may later have some use for you"_

_Hissing once again, the creature suddenly sprang back to life, catching Plasmius off guard and leaping on top of him. Once the ghost had Plasmius pinned down, he pummeled Plasmius with vicious punches. The creature only let out a raspy, maniacal laugh as he beat down on Vlad who tried fighting back with a series of left handed punch to the face. The ghost only responded by biting Plasmius' hand and punching him in the throat. Plasmius was not going to lose to this barely unintelligent thing and threw up a shield in front of his face to protect himself. Plasmius then managed to slide underneath the legs of the monster and hit it with a spinning kick to the back of its head. The ghost turned around and sank its teeth into Plasmius' neck, drawing blood and causing Plasmius to hiss in pain. Thinking quickly, Plasmius placed his hand directly on the creature's face before unleashing his biggest ghost stinger on the ghost. The ghost let out a wild scream and released it's grip on Plasmius' neck, flying away into the distance. Plasmius slowly rose to his feet and looked around for the fleeing creature, not willing to call the battle just yet and certainly not willing to accept the fact that he had nearly been defeated by a ghost with the apparent intelligence of a pile of rocks. Plasmius was left shaken from the experience, sporting two puncture marks on the side of his neck that oozed ectoplasm and blood. Aside from that small wound, Plasmius was more or less uninjured. Dusting himself off, Plasmius decided to return to his safe house to fire up a training simulation. Plasmius knew he'd probably end up running into that ghost again with his luck and he intended to be ready for round two._

"I have a hard time believing that you admitted defeat rather than chase after an unknown ghost who ambushed you and got the better of you in combat," Dani said as Plasmius finished the first half of his recap.

"I didn't admit defeat," Plasmius replied. "I simply made the smart decision not to pick another fight with the creature that attacked me until I found out more about it. Fortunately, the creature's bite left a DNA sample that I could analyze in my laboratory to gain more information on the mysterious phantom."

Once Plasmius had returned to his hideout, he headed into his laboratory to set up a virtual sparring session. Plasmius' machine allowed him to have theoretical battles with any opponent as well as tell Plasmius their strengths and weaknesses, provided he had a sample of their genetic make up. Fortunately for fruit loop, the saliva left behind on his bite wound would provide more than a sufficient amount of DNA for the machine to analyze. Plasmius dabbed up the ghost's saliva with a cotton swab before imputing the data into his machine. Plasmius had to wait a couple of minutes before the machine returned anything conclusive about the ghost, but the small wait allowed Vlad to patch up his small wounds. Finally, after about 30 minutes, the machine returned information on the mysterious ghost. The machine returned very few facts that could be considered useful aside from a few potential weaknesses it may have possessed, leaving Vlad a little disappointed. The only useful piece of information he had gained from the analysis and his earlier encounter was that the savage ghost was seemingly slightly vulnerable to the effects of electricity. Taking that tidbit into account, Plasmius could possibly defeat the monster in any future encounter by simply spamming his Ghost Stinger ability.

Vlad finished recounting his encounter with Ira, allowing Dani to fill him in on what was going on and who Ira was.

"That mysterious ghost you encountered is named Ira," Dani told him. "And going off of what Jonathan told me, he's a much bigger threat than you initially thought."

"Well obviously he's a threat," Plasmius retorted. "But I wouldn't call him anything to be too worried about seeing as I managed to run him off."

"The reason you were able to chase Ira away might have something to do with the fact that he's probably not at full strength due to being in hibernation for the past 15,000 years before you destroyed his prison," Dani pointed out.

"Might I remind you that I had more than a little help destroying that tomb in the first place," Vlad reminded her. "It doesn't matter who's to blame for freeing Ira or whatever he's called. What matters is defeating it before it causes major trouble,"

"I have a hard time believing you're too concerned about Ira causing any trouble," Dani said. "So what's your true motive?"

"It's simple," Plasmius replied. "I still desire to take my revenge on you, Daniel, and Samantha, and take your place as the ruler of the Ghost Zone and the Earth as well." Plasmius confessed. "But this ghost Ira, or whatever it's called, is a ghost the likes of which, I've never encountered before. While I've come across my fair share of mindless, almost animalistic ghosts, those could be defeated with little effort. Ira, on the other hand a mindless animal who's only interested in causing destruction and has the strength to back it up and actually come to be a true threat. A savage that exhibits as much brutality as it does might not only get in the way of my plans on conquest, but also derive me of the pleasure of killing the three of you myself. I can't rule over the Ghost Zone if there's nothing left to rule over."

"Glad to know you still haven't lost your egomania and self destructive tendency to hold grudges" Dani said sarcastically, rolling her eyes before questioning "And how do I know you won't betray the three of us as soon as Ira is taken care of?" Dani asked, still not willing to accept Vlad just yet. "After all, you just admitted to still wanting power."

"I don't blame you for not being willing to trust me," Vlad said. "But we're going to need to work together if we want to take Ira down. I promise I won't betray the three of you even after Ira is dealt with. Besides, even if I was going to betray you, I'd expect the three of you to be prepared for it."

"Alright," Dani begrudgingly decided to accept Vlad's help but warned him. "But if you even think about stabbing us in the back, we'll make sure to finish you once and for all."

Vlad rolled his eyes and said "Now that we've finished explaining everything, let's split up and see if we can find Ira and hopefully put an end to him now!"

With that said, the two halfas quickly went their separate ways, with Dani carrying an unconscious Jonathan with her. She'd have to explain everything to him when he woke up as well as explain the situation to Danny and Sam. Dani looked down at her watch and saw that they still had another two hours left before getting out of school. She hoped she could contain this situation before they even got a chance to find out about it.

**In the Next Chapter:**

**_Danielle didn't plan to be out for too long. She planned on only search for Ira for about thirty minutes, maybe an hour at most, before returning to the castle and waiting for Danny and Sam to get out of school so she could get their help in dealing with the situation. After all, it was only another hour and a half before they got out. Unfortunately for the ghost princess, fate had other plans. Only fifteen minutes after she started her search, Dani found herself on a desert esque island that she hadn't ever seen before. At this point, Dani had gotten used to discovering new areas of the Ghost Zone, but she couldn't help but feel she had stumbled upon this dusty desert island for a reason. Could the beastly Ira possibly be hiding out here? There was only one way to find out so Dani landed down on the island and began looking around. The desert island looked like a movie setting, with green cacti and large sand dunes stretching across the land. The island was also somewhat reminiscent of old western movie settings with a couple of cow skulls lying about, scorpions skittering across the sand, and rattlesnakes slithering around in the sand. Other than the aforementioned ghost animals, there was no other sign of life around. Still, Dani wasn't prepared to give up so easily and continued trekking across the desert. After about five minutes, Dani heard what sounded like snarling in the distance and followed in the direction of the noise to find its source. Dani half expected the noise to be coming from another desert animal such as perhaps a wildcat. Instead however, Dani ended up stumbling upon the wild ghost itself, Ira. Ira looked just as Plasmius had described him, having pale chalky grey skin, a skeletal yet muscular build, and wild, flowing, unkempt black hair that ran past his shoulders. Dani stood motionless for a couple of seconds, having second thoughts about coming out on this search alone and wondering if it would be a good idea to approach Ira. Currently, Ira was sitting cross legged near a cactus and appeared to be eating something. Dani found that strange since if she recalled correctly, ghosts had no need to eat. If Dani had the Fenton thermos on her, she could've simply captured the beast without even being seen by it. Cursing her lack of foresight, Dani moved in to make an attempt at capturing Ira. She tried sneaking up on him, accidentally stepped on an unseen, dry twig, blowing her cover._**

**Oh Danielle, you have no idea what you're getting yourself into. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays everyone, I hope you're all enjoying your holiday season. There's nothing like Christmas season. Spending time with family.**

**Eddie: Opening presents.**

**Peter: And the food! Oh god, don't forget the delicious food! Like the turkey, the macaroni and cheese, and all the chocolate! Oh god, the chocolate! Have I mentioned I like chocolate?**

**Me: And to top it all of, TeamFourStar releases a new episode (or movie) of DragonBall Z Abdidged (and Hellsing Ultimate Abridged if we're lucky)**.

**I'm starting to go off on a tangent. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter and look forward to what's coming ahead. 2016 was one of the craziest and unpredictable years I've ever lived through and I'm looking forward to see what insanity 2017 will offer. Not to mention I turn old enough to gamble in 2017. Getting off on another tangent so let me get back to the point. This is the final chapter of 2016 and we're going to kick off 2017 with a bang as the next chapter of God Save the Queen will be uploaded on January 1st, provided nothing comes up. Peace out and have a nice day!**


	37. Meeting the Beast

**God Save The Queen Chapter 36: Meeting the Beast**

Dani carried Jonathan back to the castle so she could continue the search for Ira. Based on Plasmius' description, the beast shouldn't be too hard to find. A skinny gray old man with black eyes of crazy/ red eyes of evil wrapped in chains should stick out like a sore thumb compared to the many other denizens of the Ghost Zone. It was when Dani got back to the castle that Jonathan finally started to stir, groggy and disoriented from having a vase dropped on his head. The royal guard shook the cobwebs out of his head, placing his hand to the back of his head to soothe the sharp throbbing pain and looked up at Dani.

"Wh-What happened?" Jonathan asked in confusion. "Did we find Ira? Did he attack us? Are you alright?"

"We didn't find Ira," Dani told him. "But I did get a solid lead about him from a not so trustworthy source."

"Oh come now, we need tips from whoever has come across Ira no matter how untrustworthy they may seem," Jonathan said before Dani told him "It was from Vlad Plasmius and he said that he'd need the help of me, Danny, and Sam to defeat Ira" causing Jonathan to nearly jump out his boots and exclaim "What?!" Quickly composing himself, Jonathan said "Are you mad, your highness?! Why did you accept help from Plasmius?! Might I remind you that this fruit loop tried killing you and your family not too long ago! For all we know, Plasmius could've intentionally freed Ira and is attempting to control him for his own nefarious purposes!"

"I'm not exactly thrilled about working with Plasmius either and I sure as hell don't trust him," Dani assured Jonathan. "But Vlad actually has encountered Ira and was even attacked by him. Out of the three of us, he's the only one who's actually come face to face with Ira and might actually know something about defeating him."

"If he had any information about any potential weaknesses Ira had, then why didn't he tell you about them?" Jonathan asked.

"He did," Dani replied. "Going off what Vlad told me, Ira seemed to show a vulnerability to electricity or at the very least, that was the only method of attack that seemed to affect him or at least slow him down."

"The key phrase of that statement being 'going off what Vlad told you'," Jonathan retorted. "Plasmius has no problems lying and manipulating people to gain their trust and take advantage of them. If Vlad truly needed our help then why'd he attack me and knock me out when the two of us were alone rather than simply asking for your assistance?"

"Would you really have listened to Plasmius or would you have confronted him while telling me to get out of there?" Dani replied causing Jonathan to sheepishly reply "Fair point." "And I don't mean to defend Plasmius in any way, but if Plasmius had ulterior motives then why didn't he just attack me while you were knocked out?"

"I guess you do have a point," Jonathan said. "But all I'm saying is that you should be a bit more hesitant before trusting Plasmius. Even if he is truly sincere in his plea for your help, you should still keep your eyes on him at all times and watch your back"

"I'm already one step ahead of you," Dani said before turn isn't to go look for Ira.

"Wait, where are you going?" Jonathan asked.

"To look for Ira," Dani answered. "He isn't going to capture himself."

"Wait a minute, you can't just go look for Ira by yourself, you have no idea what you're getting yourself into!" Jonathan said, urgently chasing after Dani. "As the head guard of the royal family, I can't allow you to embark on such a dangerous mission by yourself!"

"As the daughter of King Danny and Queen Sam and therefore the Royal Princess, I order you to stand down and let me do this," Dani said, knowing that Jonathan had no choice but to obey his orders.

"Y-Yes ma'am, your highness," Jonathan said reluctantly, bowing down to one knee.

"Don't get too worried about it, I'll be fine" Dani said as she flew off. "The Ghost Zone is so big it's unlikely I'll even cross paths with Ira. And even if I do, I can always come back here if things get out of hand."

Danielle didn't plan to be out for too long. She planned on only search for Ira for about thirty minutes, maybe an hour at most, before returning to the castle and waiting for Danny and Sam to get out of school so she could get their help in dealing with the situation. After all, it was only another hour and a half before they got out. Unfortunately for the ghost princess, fate had other plans. Only fifteen minutes after she started her search, Dani found herself on a desert esque island that she hadn't ever seen before. At this point, Dani had gotten used to discovering new areas of the Ghost Zone, but she couldn't help but feel she had stumbled upon this dusty desert island for a reason. Could the beastly Ira possibly be hiding out here? There was only one way to find out so Dani landed down on the island and began looking around. The desert island looked like a movie setting, with green cacti and large sand dunes stretching across the land. The island was also somewhat reminiscent of old western movie settings with a couple of cow skulls lying about, scorpions skittering across the sand, and rattlesnakes slithering around in the sand. Other than the aforementioned ghost animals, there was no other sign of life around. Still, Dani wasn't prepared to give up so easily and continued trekking across the desert. After about five minutes, Dani heard what sounded like snarling in the distance and followed in the direction of the noise to find its source. Dani half expected the noise to be coming from another desert animal such as perhaps a wildcat. Instead however, Dani ended up stumbling upon the wild ghost itself, Ira. Ira looked just as Plasmius had described him, having pale chalky grey skin, a skeletal yet muscular build, and wild, flowing, unkempt black hair that ran past his shoulders. Dani stood motionless for a couple of seconds, having second thoughts about coming out on this search alone and wondering if it would be a good idea to approach Ira. Currently, Ira was sitting cross legged near a cactus and appeared to be eating something. Dani found that strange since if she recalled correctly, ghosts had no need to eat. If Dani had the Fenton thermos on her, she could've simply captured the beast without even being seen by it. Cursing her lack of foresight, Dani moved in to make an attempt at capturing Ira. She tried sneaking up on him, accidentally stepped on an unseen, dry twig, blowing her cover.

"Uh oh," Dani said to herself as the beast turned around, revealing his manic eyes.

Green ectoplasm dripped from the savage's glistening fangs and down his bare torso as Dani got a glimpse at what Ira had been snacking on. Lying motionless on the ground in front of Ira was a ghost jackal. The poor animal had its stomach ripped open and its entire body was covered in slash and bite marks. Upon closer inspection, it appeared that the jackal's skull had been cracked as well and one of its hind legs was bent at a sickening angle. Dani gasped at the sight before quickly remembering what she should really be focused on, turning to Ira. Upon seeing Danielle, Ira bared its fangs and hissed before standing to his feet and staring her down. Dani barely had time to react before the creature sprang, pouncing at her with vicious intent. Dani ducked to the left, causing Ira to fly over her head and crash spine first into a cactus. Showing no signs of pain or even mild irritation, Ira quickly pulled himself from the cactus, leaving dozens, if not hundreds of sharp spines lodged in his bare back and attacked Danielle a second time, swinging wildly with lefts and rights. Because of the brute's sloppiness, Danielle was able to easily dodge most of his attacks before hitting Ira in the chin with a big kick to the face. Ira grunted, staggering back a couple of steps before once again charging at Dani.

"So, I take it you're the big bad monster that everyone's been so scared of," Dani said, making sure not to take Ira too lightly while taunting him. Ira didn't utter a word and kept trying to attack Dani, this time by stretching his arms to great lengths and wrapping them around Dani like ropes. This caught the young ghost princess off guard, allowing Ira to lift her up and slam her into the ground repeatedly, leaving Dani dazed and confused. "Wow, didn't see that coming"

Shaking her head to clear the cobwebs, Dani resisted Ira's grip and planted herself firmly on the ground. She started spinning around rapidly in circles, using Ira's stretchy arms against him, swinging the barbaric ghost around like a spinning top. Ira let out a rather quiet irritated scream that sounded more like he was groaning before foolishly releasing his grasp on Dani, sending him flying over the horizon and crashing headfirst into a large rock, the impact causing the rock to crumble into pieces. Dani quickly followed after him, wondering if perhaps she could neutralize him long enough for him to be captured. Not any time soon apparently as Ira was up and about by the time Dani arrive on the scene and in fact surprised her by using his head as a battering ram, flying headfirst into her chest. The blow knocked nearly all of the air out of Dani's lung and she took a moment to gasp for breath. The attack seemed to take just as much out of Ira as it did Danielle as he rapidly shook his head while looking cross eyed and groggy. Ira shook off the effects of his head butt soon afterwards and went after Dani again, trying to hit the girl with an overhead double fisted punch from above, but Dani moved out of the way in he nick of time, resulting in Ira smashing another rock to bits. While Ira was temporarily distracted, Dani turned invisible to avoid detection and took a few seconds to recover. Dani had no way of knowing that Ira could track her with his sense of smell and was shocked when she felt his sharp teeth sink into her right arm. Hissing in pain, Dani threw her elbow backwards as hard as she could, striking Ira in the left eye and causing him to back off slightly. Dani followed up with a blast to Ira's neck, sending the latter blasting off again.

"Man, Plasmius wasn't exaggerating when he said Ira fought like an animal," Dani noted as she tended to her bleeding arm. Ira's fangs hadn't sunk in too deeply and Dani's healing factor should've been capable of healing what was relatively minor damage in no time at all. "Now how am I going to stop this thing, if that's even possible?"

Ira was back into the fray soon afterwards, showing no signs of slowing down in the slightest. Dani then remembered how Vlad mentioned Ira seemed to show a weakness to electricity

"The only problem is, I don't know how to generate any electric attacks," Dani thought to herself as Ira got closer. "Well I guess now's a good time to learn." Dani closed her eyes and started to concentrate on generating electricity. Even a relatively small shock should get Ira to back off some. As every second passed, Ira came nearer and nearer with Dani having no results. Finally, when Ira was mere inches from her face, Dani felt a small ball of electricity form in her hands. Dani tossed the electric ball right in Ira's face, causing the beast to shriek and shrink back. The attack didn't keep him down for long as Ira charged at Dani, hitting her with a kick to back of the head.

"Darn it, my electric attack was so weak it barely even phased him," Dani thought to herself as she dodged a sloppy right hand from Ira and countered with a stiff kick to Ira's chest, knocking the ghost back a couple of meters. "According to Plasmius, that's his only obvious weakness, but I can't capitalize on it due to my inexperience with electrokinesis." Dani was just quick enough to dodge and deflect a volley of ectoblasts when Ira unexpectedly switched his strategy from striking to blasting. "I'm going to have to find some other way to hurt him, but how?" Dani asked herself before forming a devilish smirk on her face as she got an idea. Forming two icicles in her hands, Dani used them to stab Ira right in the eyes. The beast shrieked in agony and staggered backwards, grabbing at his eyes. While Ira was tending to his injured eyes, Dani tied him up tight with ectoplasmic goo. Ira struggled on the ground, thrashing and hissing like a rabid animal for a couple of minutes, biting at Dani as she approached him.

"Hmm, that was easier than I thought," Dani said as she prepared to take Ira back to his tomb.

Ira wasn't prepared to go down without a fight however and broke free of the ectoplasm binding him, catching Dani by surprise and biting her in the shoulder. Dani hissed in pain before being grabbed by her arm and flung her into the air.

"And that explains why," Dani said as she corrected herself in midair and launched an ice ball at Ira in an attempt to freeze him in place. The ice ball hit Ira head on in his chest, causing ice to slowly expand over Ira's entire body. Ira looked around in confusion, hissing and growling as he tried in vain to prevent the ice from completely enveloping him. It was no use however as pretty soon, Ira was completely encased in an ice crystal that was at least 4 inches thick. For a few moments, Dani's attack seemed to work as Ira struggled trying to break out of the thick ice encasing him. He couldn't move any of his limbs as Dani was about to find out, that didn't make him any less dangerous. With a loud mighty howl, Ira managed to blow a huge hole through the ice, allowing him slight movement of his head and neck. A few centimeters of wiggle room was all Ira needed as with two quick head jerks to the left and right, Ira freed his head completely. Dani tried keeping him contained with an ectoblast to the face, but Ira shook it off and used a pair of eyebeams to weaken the ice encasing the rest of his body. When the ice was weakened significantly enough, Ira shattered through it, sending shards of ice everywhere. At this point, Dani was starting to get a little tired from constantly fighting the implacable ghost, wondering just what she had to do to keep him stunned for even a couple of minutes. She didn't have time to think for very long as Ira quickly closed any gap between them, launching himself at the younger halfa. Dani moved out of the way and positioned herself in front of a very tall, very large cactus, waiting for Ira to charge once again. Needless to say, Ira took the bait hook, line, and sinker as Dani rolled out of the way at the last possible second, causing Ira to collide head on into the cactus and briefly get himself stuck on the cactus' spines.

"Now I see why everyone is so afraid of you," Dani said, shielding herself in an ecto bubble.

The juggernaut of a ghost wasn't kept down for very long, but this time after he got up, didn't even try to attack Dani. Instead he grumbled incoherently as he turned to face Dani again. The expression on his face looked like a strange mix of disappointment, a little surprise, frustration, and apathy. Ira huffed and turned his back to Dani, preparing to fly away, giving off the impression of a child who had just been beaten in his favorite game and didn't want to play anymore/ a wild predator that was surprised and frustrated that its prey had managed to escape it/ a kid who was simply bored of playing with his toys and was off to go do something else. Dani didn't know how to feel or what to do about the situation. Part of her mind was relieved at the thought of no longer having to fight the savage monster and was telling her to let Ira go wherever he was headed, while another part of her mind was telling her not to let Ira get away so easily and to go after him. Ultimately, Dani listened to the latter part of her mind and gave chase after Ira.

"Hey, where do you think you're going?" Dani asked as she went after Ira. "I don't recall saying that you could leave just yet."

Ira didn't utter a single word or even growl in response, and instead with one strong, swift punch to the jaw, sent Dani spiraling into the ground. The blow was so strong that the impact nearly broke Dani's neck. Sprawled out on the ground, Dani watched as Ira took off into the sky, fading in and out of consciousness and finally having an idea of just what made the creature was so fearsome. Danielle blinked, trying to recover from the barbaric blow as her head felt like it was spinning in all directions. When Dani finally did regain her composure, she had the sudden realization that Ira had likely been toying with her the entire time. The beast of a ghost could've easily defeated her with a single punch had he wanted to, but like a true predator decided to play with his prey until he got bored. With Ira long gone, Dani decided to return to the castle and tell recount what just happened to Jonathan. As Dani turned to leave, she got a better idea and decided to seek help from the Master of Time himself, Clockwork. Being the oldest being in existence, Clockwork had to have some useful information on the master. Perhaps, he had even helped in originally sealing Ira away. Flying as fast as she could with a dizzy head, Dani headed for the Clock Tower.

**In the Next Chapter:**

**_When Dani arrived at the Clock Tower, she found that it was deathly quiet. Normally, Clockwork's domain would be filled with the sound of constantly ticking clocks and occasionally bells ringing. The lack of noise only served to make Dani even more tense. Did Ira's escape have some sort of effect on the Master of Time? Was even he intimidated by the savage specter? Apparently not as Dani found Clockwork staring nonchalantly into a time warp ball._**

**_"Come in, Danielle, I've been expecting your arrival," Clockwork, changing from his adult form to his child form as continued staring into the time warp ball. The Time Master made a small grunt of intrigue at what was taking place inside said time warp ball before turning to address Dani. "So I take it you're here because of Ira's recent escape?"_**

**_"I see you've heard the news too," Dani said, nodding her head in response to Clockwork's question._**

**_"Are you kidding me; the Observants almost drove me mad this morning with their constant demands regarding Ira," Clockwork said, switching into his elderly form. "It's amazing that two supposedly omnipotent beings can question the Master of Time, the only person who knows for certain how events will play out."_**

**Kicking off 2017 with a bang (or a pop if you're more cynical). So Danielle's finally come face to face with the fearsome monster everyone's been talking about and panicking over. Without giving too much away, Dani will find out later on that Ira isn't as fearsome as made out to be, but still shouldn't be taken lightly. In the meantime, how can our heroine hope to overcome this brute of a ghost with incredible strength but the mind of a savage, rabid animal? What kind of advice will Clockwork give Dani on how to overcome this newest challenge? Will Dani be able to master the Ghost Stinger ability in time to defeat Ira? All these questions and more will be answered in the next chapter of God Save The Queen. I've been your gracious host Timothy D and as always peace out and have a happy new year!**

**Next update will be January 28th.**


	38. Setting A Trap

**God Save the Queen Chapter 37: Setting A Trap**

As Dani made her way to the Clock Tower, she made sure to constantly look over her shoulder in case she ended up accidentally stumbling upon the ghost beast once again. She seemed a little jumpy at any sudden movements, constantly double checking to make sure no one or thing was following her. The short scuffle with Ira had clearly shaken her up, something that Dani was well aware of. She tried calming herself down, telling herself that there was nothing to worry about, that Ira was long gone and even if they did cross paths again, he'd likely have no interest in fighting her again. Although that raised another concern in that Ira could easily be looking for more victims to terrorize. The more time that was spent looking for him was more time the animalistic ghost could be mutilating some unfortunate soul. Dani pushed all of those thoughts out of her head for the sake of not getting too panicked. By this time, Danny and Sam should've gotten out of school two hours ago so Dani tried calling them to let them know of the situation. Strangely, their phones went straight to voicemail, not ringing once, raising a few red flags. Even if they were fighting ghosts, their phones still should've rang. Dani tried calling them again, getting the same result, causing her to become concerned before returning to the task at hand and focused on getting to the Clock Tower, looking over her shoulder cautiously the whole way there.

"Look at me, I've faced ghosts that are much more terrifying yet this ghost has me jumping at every little noise," Dani chuckled humorlessly, dismissing her concern for Danny and Sam by thinking "Maybe the batteries on their phone just died; there's nothing to worry about… I hope."

When Dani arrived at the Clock Tower, she found that it was deathly quiet. Normally, Clockwork's domain would be filled with the sound of constantly ticking clocks and occasionally bells ringing. The lack of noise only served to make Dani even more tense. Did Ira's escape have some sort of effect on the Master of Time? Was even he intimidated by the savage specter? Apparently not as Dani found Clockwork staring nonchalantly into a time warp ball.

"Come in, Danielle, I've been expecting your arrival," Clockwork, changing from his adult form to his child form as continued staring into the time warp ball. The Time Master made a small grunt of intrigue at what was taking place inside said time warp ball before turning to address Dani. "So I take it you're here because of Ira's recent escape?"

"I see you've heard the news too," Dani said, nodding her head in response to Clockwork's question.

"Are you kidding me; the Observants almost drove me mad this morning with their constant demands regarding Ira," Clockwork said, switching into his elderly form. "It's amazing that two supposedly omnipotent beings can question the Master of Time, the only person who knows for certain how events will play out."

"So can you help us recapture Ira?" Dani asked. "After fighting him personally, I can say for a fact that we're going to need all the help we can get. The monster of a ghost was seemingly invulnerable to everything I threw at him."

"Unfortunately, I'm unable to lend assistance for this problem," Clockwork told her.

"What!? But why not?" Dani asked, trying her hardest to hide the fear in her voice.

"My responsibilities require me to keep a constant eye on flow of time and the multiple timelines that are based on our own," Clockwork explained.

"But I can't possibly take on Ira on my own!" Dani argued, sounding a little frantic. "And I can't seem to get in tact with Danny, Sam, or Tucker at all!"

"The King, Queen, and Mayor are currently preoccupied at the moment with their own problem," Clockwork said, switching to his child form and then to his adult form in rapid succession and glancing down at the time warp ball in front of him. "Don't worry, they'll be finished with their task in time to help you and Plasmius deal with this new threat."

"Wait a minute, how did you know I was teaming with Vlad?" Dani asked.

"Master of Time," Clockwork reminded her, shifting to his elderly form once again. "I can tell you right now that even with your combined strength, the two of you will be unable to defeat him. However, the two of you shouldn't be trying to defeat him. For the time being, your primary focus should be containing Ira and keeping him confined to the Ghost Zone until Danny and Sam make their return."

"But how are we going to be able to contain Ira if we can't even hurt him?" Dani asked. "And after the fight I just had with him, I don't think he'll be interested in fighting me again. And even if I can get him to fight me again, how long will I have to keep him distracted before Danny and Sam get back?"

"You don't necessarily have to fight him to keep him distracted," Clockwork replied. "There's more than one way to draw and keep the attention of a beast. Just use what you already know about Ira to your advantage and keep Ira preoccupied until the King and Queen make their return."

"But the only thing I know about Ira is that he loves fighting and destruction, and that he has a weakness to electricity, how can I-" Dani said before getting an idea. "Thanks Clockwork, you've been a great help" she said quickly as she departed back to the castle to inform the others of her plan.

As she left however, Clockwork gave her one last piece of advice "Oh, and be sure to keep your anger in check while fighting Ira." Dani nodded, agreeing to heed his instructions and went on her way.

Jonathan and the other guards were anxiously pacing the floor, awaiting the return of Danielle. Jonathan, in particular, didn't know if he could ever forgive himself if something bad happened to the young princess. The guards would have to wait no longer as Dani walked into the throne room.

"Your highness, thank goodness you're alright!" Jonathan said, before noticing the small cuts and bruises on Dani's arms and face. "You didn't have an encounter with him, did you?"

"I wish I could say no," Dani replied. "I finally got a chance to see what all the fuss was about. Just like Plasmius said, almost everything I threw at him had virtually no effect on him."

"You're lucky to have escaped with your life," Jonathan commented. "A being that ferocious isn't known for sparing his opponent or in his case, prey."

"There's no way we're going to be able to defeat him or lock him back up on our own even with Plasmius' help," Dani informed them. "We're going to have to keep Ira busy and contained within the Ghost Zone until Danny and Sam get back."

"What?!" Jonathan exclaimed. "If we aren't even capable of defeating Ira in combat, how can we possibly hope to keep him here in the Ghost Zone?!"

"Don't worry, I've got an idea of how we can keep Ira distracted with having to fight him," Dani told him. "I'll be right back, I just need to get some things." With that said, Dani had left just as quick as she arrived and headed to FentonWorks. With all the ghost hunting equipment at the Fentons' disposal, they were bound to have the gadget she'd need. As Dani made her way over to the Fenton Ghost Portal, she made sure to check over her shoulder. The last thing she needed was for Ira to follow her through the portal and into the human world. When Dani exited the portal, she saw Jack and Maddie in the basement, working on some new type of weapon.

"Hi there, Danielle," Maddie cheerfully greeted her. "We hadn't seen you since this morning and were starting to get worried."

"Heh, no reason to worry, I was just… you know fighting some ghosts and returning them to the Ghost Zone," Dani said nervously, not wanting to let them in on what really was going on.

"That a girl Dani, show those ectoplasmic slime balls who's boss!" Jack said before asking. "Say, have you by chance seen Danny, Sam, or Tucker? They'd normally be here by now since school's over."

"No, I haven't seen or heard from them," Dani said, getting slightly more worried before saying "They're probably just got caught up in fighting ghosts, I'm sure they're fine."

"Is everything alright?" Maddie asked, picking up on Dani's nervous demeanor.

"Everything's fine!" Dani quickly assured her, making sure to change her stance to better hide her nervousness before lying and saying "I'm just a little worried since I haven't heard from Danny all day."

"But I thought you just told us not to worry since they were probably just out fighting ghosts," Jack retorted, a little suspicious but not having any reason to be too concerned.

"That doesn't mean I'm not a bit concerned about their safety" Dani replied before changing the subject and asking "Say, you wouldn't happen to have any hologram projectors, would you?"

"In the drawer to the bottom left" Maddie said, pointing Dani in the right direction before growing curious and asking "Why do you need them?"

"It's been a rather slow day, so I'm just going to go do some training in The Ghost Zone," Dani lied, opening the drawer and finding five hologram projectors. Dani grabbed two projectors and the remotes that controlled them just in case things went awry before quickly thanking Jack and Maddie and heading back into the Ghost Zone. "Man, that was close" She thought to herself, speeding back to the castle. "If everything goes according to plan, this problem will be over in no time."

Once she was back at the castle, Dani took the time to explain her plans to the guards, who were still curious as to what trick the Phantom daughter had up her sleeve.

"So, your highness; what is your plan to defeat Ira?" Jonathan asked, he and the other guards sitting in the conference room, awaiting their orders.

"First things first, we will not be able to defeat Ira on our own," Dani informed the guards, causing them to let out a collective gasp that was a combination of disappointment and worry. "Yes, unfortunately we're reduced to waiting until Danny and Sam return before we stand a chance at even recapturing him," Dani said, causing the guards to sigh in further disappointment before Dani added "But… that doesn't mean that we can't keep Ira distracted and away from everyone else."

"But how can we possibly hope to keep that monster distracted if none of us can even match him in combat?" One guard asked anxiously, wondering if the princess had lost her mind.

"I know it sounds crazy, but just trust me on this one," Dani said before continuing to explain her plan. "The key to keeping Ira preoccupied relies on using our wits instead of our brawn" Dani then pulled out one of the hologram projectors she had borrowed from the Fentons and turned it on, bringing about a holographic image of Ira, himself. "Right now, the only thing I know about Ira is that he loves a fight and apparently, he loves it when his prey puts up a good fight. So what better way to keep Ira at bay than by presenting him with an opponent that he can't hit?" With that said, Dani pressed a button on the remote to the projector and the image switched to that of your typical generic ghost.

"Your highness, are you proposing that we use these things to keep Ira distracted?" Asked one guard, not seeing just how Dani's plan could work. "Doesn't that seem a little ridiculous? I mean, that creature is a savage and you expect hold his attention with mere holographic images?"

"That's exactly what I'm proposing," Dani replied. "If anyone else has any other ideas, I'd just love to hear them." The entire roundtable fell quiet, with none of the guards able to think of another solution. "That's what I thought, now let's get down to finding and luring Ira out into the open."

With that said, the guards and the princess split up and set out to find Ira.

**In the Next Chapter:**

**_Instantly, a hologram depicting a common red shirt ghost appeared in the center of the tomb's ruins. Ira landed on the island shortly after that and one of the soldiers hiding behind the rock lent their voice to the hologram to fool the creature._**

"**_Hey! Over here, stupid!" He yelled, prompting Ira to turn around towards he hologram. Instantly, the beast started salivating at the mouth with his fangs glistening as he licked his lips at the fresh prey before him. With stunning speed, Ira pounced at the "ghost", and was surprised when he went right through him despite the fact that Ira hadn't seen the ghost turn intangible. "Ha! You're the big bad monster that's got everyone shaking in their boots? What a joke!" The "ghost" mocked Ira._**

**_"You know, maybe if you trained and conditioned yourself after being freed instead of terrorizing and attacking a bunch of worthless, spineless, helpless bags of ectoplasm, your punches might hit a little closer to home" The 'ghost' taunted Ira yet again. To keep the illusion going and to keep Ira from getting suspicious, Dani used the remote control for the hologram projectors to play an animation that showed the 'ghost' taking damage and flying backwards at the exact moment Ira threw a wild punch to its face. Sweat dripped down Dani's forehead as she stayed focused on making sure the hologram's movements were precise and in sync with its voice actor as well as Ira's movements, like a puppeteer_**.

**Hmm, that's an interesting idea that Dani has and a new approach to defeating a foe. Trickery and strategy rather than just "Attack! Attack! Attack!". The only question is will it work against the raging spirit? Could Ira widen up to her trap and avoid it or will he prove to be so mindless that the trap fails anyway?**

**Eddie: Given the preview of the next chapter you gave, Yadonushi, I'm pretty sure the readers already know that her plan works to some degree.**

**But they don't know to what degree her plan succeeds and to find that out they're going to have to tune in next time to God Save The Queen! Peace out and have a good day!**


	39. Springing The Trap!

**GSTQ Chapter 38: Springing the Trap! Plasmius' Incredible Stupidity**

With a thought out plan to hold off the beast for the time being, Dani, Jonathan, and the r st of the Knights and guards all split into three type of groups to set up the trap. The first group consisted of Dani, Jonathan, and around three to four knights and involved heading to Ira's former resting place to set up the holographic equipment in a concealed place where Ira wouldn't be able to see it as well as rearranging a few rocks so that they could hide behind them. After the trap arrangement was completed, Dani and Jonathan would join the second group in their task. The second group consisted of most of the remaining Knights and guards and the ones more suited for personal close combat, who would make up most of the search party who, if they found Ira, were responsible for luring him to the trap's location. The hunters were instructed to split up in order to cover more ground and increase their odds of success. The third and final group was made up of the remaining guards, who would stand by and guard the castle in case Ira should stumble upon it and launch an attack as well as safe guard it from any other threat be it in the form of panicked ghosts seeking safety from Ira or any possible remnants of Vlad's rebellion seeking to take the opportunity to attack while the guards were away. Dani made sure to stress to the group hunting Ira that no matter how tempting it may be, that they should not attack or try to neutralize Ira at all. While the order seemed unnecessary and perhaps a bit redundant since the second group had a few older guards didn't need to be told twice, most of the pairings in the group were made up of younger much more trigger happy members and knights seeking to prove their worth and possibly attain glory by being the one to defeat the beast and needed to be scolded by their superiors for letting their egos potentially cloud their judgment. The last thing any of them needed was for a glory bound to put the entire ghost zone in even more jeopardy by being reckless and impulsive. For safety purposes, the second group was split into pairs and advised to watch each other's back at all times. With the Ghost Zone as vast as it was, everyone knew they had a lot of ground to cover if they wanted to find Ira in time to prevent people from getting hurt. In addition to the new menace, Dani was curious as to the whereabouts of Vlad. It had been three hours since she had last heard encountered him and wondered if maybe Vlad had had another encounter with Ira. While she didn't know whether or not she could trust the fruit loop and didn't want to admit, she felt they'd have a better chance of holding off the beast with his presence. There was no time to dwell on Vlad's location at the moment with the task at hand.

"Alright, so before we go our separate ways, is everyone clear on what they're assigned to do?" Dani asked.

"Yes ma'am!" Everyone answered before they all split up to do their respective jobs. Dani and Jonathan had 12 soldiers accompanying them to Ira's tomb site to set up the gadgets to subdue him as well as act as lookouts to make sure Ira didn't stumble upon them prematurely. Two of the hologram projectors were set up far apart from each and would be used to simulate movement so that Ira wouldn't get bored by simply fighting a static image and thus possibly catch on to the trick and leave. Fortunately, the projectors could project holograms in a multitude of different directions and locations be it in the sky or right behind someone. Hopefully, this would keep Ira both occupied and chasing after the hologram long enough for Danny and Sam to return and provide assistance. Of course, the plan wasn't completely foolproof as there was always the risk of Ira getting fed up and blowing up the surrounding area which would not only destroy the holograms, but reveal the loyal staff's hiding places. That was why the spare projector came in handy to keep up the illusion and distract Ira even if he did such a thing.

Of course, there was still the task of finding and luring the beast to the locations this former tomb which would definitely be easier said than done. From what Dani had observed, Ira could move extremely quickly when he wanted to and if he were to catch one of them while they were trying to lure him back to the site, it could ruin their entire plan. Dani pushed those thoughts aside, knowing she'd just have to hope for the best and that she could find Ira before he escaped into the human world. Hopefully, he hadn't already done just that.

The other pairs assigned to assist in the search for the menace were hoping they wouldn't end up being the ones with the unfortunate pleasure of finding the monster and be responsible for luring him into the trap. Unfortunately for one pair, consisting of a veteran knight and a relatively young soldier, the luck of the heavens was not on their side. The soldier thought he heard a feral growl behind him and quickly turned around, only to be greeted with the sight of nothing.

"What was it?" His partner asked, holding a firm grip on his weapon and prepared to counter a possible sneak attack.

"Nothing, nothing" The soldier said quickly. "I guess my nerves just got the better of me"

"Well calm yourself down" His partner said coldly. "The last thing we can afford is for our nerves to get the better of us and leave us open to an attack. So just take some deep breaths and remain vigilant"

"R-right" The soldier stammered as the two turned around and continued on their search. He flew five feet towards before a clawed hand suddenly stabbed into the back of his partner's head. His partner let out a strangled yell that was quickly cut off when the top half of his head was ripped off, and the culprit was none other than the beastly Ira. The soldier screamed in surprise before regaining his composure and thrusting his bayonet straight into Ira's face. The monster briefly screeched and stumbled backwards while the soldier's partner regenerated the top half of his head.

"Man, never have I been more glad that I'm already dead" The soldier's partner said as he joined his comrade by thrusting is sword through Ira's groin. Aside from momentarily surprising Ira, the attack did little damage, prompting the knight to yell "Okay, let's see how you like this!" and slashing his sword upwards, intending to slice Ira in half while his partner drove his bayonet further into Ira's skull.

Ira hissed and grabbed a hold of the blade of older knight's sword just as it reached his chest, and head butting the young soldier, driving the bayonet completely through his own head while having the added benefit of hitting the soldier in the face with the butt of his own weapon. With one mighty tug, Ira snatched the sword from the older knight and ripping the bayonet out through the back of his head. His wounds sealed up within a matter of seconds and without missing a beat, he sent the bayonet wielding soldier flying with a single kick to the chest. The sword wielding knight retreated backwards a couple of meters before observing as Ira crushed the blade of his sword in the palm of his hand.

"That shouldn't be possible! This thing can't be a simple ghost!" The knight said, showing slight signs of losing his cool for the first time since encountering Ira. "Our weapons are specifically crafted to deal damage or at the very least, neutralize even the largest ghostly threats, yet they barely inflicted any damage!"

The older knight made the decision to head toward the tomb and lure Ira into the trap rather ban waste time trying to fight/ weaken it. Slinging his younger (and at the moment, unconscious) partner over his shoulder, the knight took off towards the trap site, with Ira in tow. The knight gave the princess a call, to make sure that the trap had been completely set up so that they could put this monster back to bed. Looking over his shoulder, the knight saw that Ira was gaining on them and fast. Hoping to slow it down, The knight took a chance by lobbing one of the heavy protective iron gauntlets on his wrists into Ira's face. Ira hissed and grabbed at his head like a small child who had just walked into a screen glass door under the impression that it was opened. The move only held up the beast for maybe 30 seconds, but it was long enough for the knight to put some distance between him, his partner and the savage chasing after them. After recovering, Ira shook his head to clear the cobwebs and picked the chase up right where it left off while the knight had finally gotten in contact with Dani.

"Your highness, we've unfortunately stumbled upon Ira and he's right on our heels," The knight said, becoming less and less calm by the second as he flew as fast as he could towards the rendezvous point. "We're headed your way, please tell me that everything's ready to go."

"We're all set up and not a minute too soon," Dani informed him. "How close are you?"

"Depending on whether or not we survive, we should be arriving within the next few minutes" The knight replied, a hint of irritation in his voice at having to deal with this persistent foe while carrying his partner over his shoulder. Geez, the guy had only sustained a kick to the chest and was out cold while he had had half his head ripped off yet was still trying to outfly the terror chasing after them.

"Do you guys need any help?" Dani asked them.

"No, no, we should be fine" The knight replied before he saw the destination approaching. Looking back to make sure Ira was still chasing after them, the knight thought to himself "Hmm, amazing how fast one can fly when a second death is nipping at their heels"

The knight managed to beat Ira to the trap site by two minutes and hid behind a boulder, gasping and catching his breath now that he was safe and sound. Dani spied the two soldiers make their safe arrival and quickly activated the hologram projectors while Ira was still a few meters behind them. Instantly, a hologram depicting a common red shirt ghost appeared in the center of the tomb's ruins. Ira landed on the island shortly after that and one of the soldiers hiding behind the rock lent their voice to the hologram to fool the creature.

"Hey! Over here, stupid!" He yelled, prompting Ira to turn around towards he hologram. Instantly, the beast started salivating at the mouth with his fangs glistening as he licked his lips at the fresh prey before him. With stunning speed, Ira pounced at the "ghost", and was surprised when he went right through him despite the fact that Ira hadn't seen the ghost turn intangible. "Ha! You're the big bad monster that's got everyone shaking in their boots? What a joke!" The 'ghost' mocked Ira.

Ira didn't appreciate that and with a rabid growl, pounced at the ghost yet again, only to be met with the same result. The soldiers, knights, guards hiding behind rubble and rocks, and even Dani herself couldn't believe how stupid and gullible he was.

"I can't believe it" Dani said, as Ira continued leaping at the hologram, too stupid to realize that the red shirt was just an illusion. "I can't believe my plan actually worked this well"

"You know, maybe if you trained and conditioned yourself after being freed instead of terrorizing and attacking a bunch of worthless, spineless, helpless bags of ectoplasm, your punches might hit a little closer to home" The 'ghost' taunted Ira yet again. To keep the illusion going and to keep Ira from getting suspicious, Dani used the remote control for the hologram projectors to play an animation that showed the 'ghost' taking damage and flying backwards at the exact moment Ira threw a wild punch to its face. Sweat dripped down Dani's forehead as she stayed focused on making sure the hologram's movements were precise and in sync with its voice actor as well as Ira's movements, like a puppeteer.

Ira smirked, satisfied at having finally inflicted some damage to this foe and followed up after the ghost, going for a roundhouse kick, only for the 'ghost' to disappear and reappear a couple of meters behind him.

"Hmm, how cute, you finally managed to hit me," the hologram red shirt taunted. "Bravo, now can you keep it up or am I just going to find a better challenge in watching paint dry?"

Ira growled, hissed and screeched angrily, screaming in rage as he launched an all out assault at the hologram, throwing ecto blast after ecto blast at the 'ghost' while Dani did her best with the control panel in order to keep the illusion going. While she wasn't the most adept at using the hologram projectors, she was skilled enough with them to fool Ira and keep him none the wiser. She peeked out from behind the rocks periodically to make sure Ira was still sparring with the hologram and felt relief when she saw Ira still fighting with the same intensity he started with. She almost felt sorry for tricking the beast, thinking that it was too easy. Soon enough, Ira showed signs of slowing down and getting tired as every punch had little effect on his adversary, who was prone to teleport spamming.

"I must commend you on your cleverness, your highness" Jonathan complimented Dani upon seeing Ira start to lose steam. "Your plan is working far better than I could've possibly expected."

"I know; even I didn't expect this idea to work out as well as it is" Dani replied. "Now all we need to do is wait for him to exhaust himself and wait for Danny and Sam to get back so we can seal him back up" Dani said only for Plasmius to reappear in front of her to voice his displeasure with her plan.

"Are you being serious?" Plasmius asked exasperatedly, seemingly popping in out of nowhere. "Do you truly think that this threat can be ignored until-" Dani quickly shushed him to keep him from blowing their cover, peeking around the corner to make sure Ira hadn't heard him.

"Keep quiet!" Dani whispered, relieved when she saw Ira still obliviously fighting the hologram, before inquiring as to where Vlad had been while she and the others were formulating a plan. "Just where have you been for the past hour?"

"I was attending to important business of my own, trying to come up with a way to defeat that beast before he gets out of hand" Plasmius responded in whisper. "I must say that I'm ashamed that this is the best plan you could come up with."

"Well do you have any other ideas?" Dani retorted, briefly silencing the egomaniac.

"Actually, I have" Plasmius said before unveiling a net with white and neon green fibers as well as a small black remote with a red dial in the center. "This electric net has been specially crafted to exploit that thing's weakness to electricity. One push of the button and it'll be unable to even move let alone attack without writhing in agonizing pain."

"How do you know that?" Dani asked before pointing out "You haven't had the chance to test this theory and if you're wrong, the only thing you'll end up doing is piss Ira off."

"Well it's certainly a better option than just letting the savage take a nap until Daniel and Samantha make their return," Plasmius retorted. "We don't know how long it may take them to get back. For all we know, they might not return until tomorrow by which point Ira can easily have awoken and resumed his rampage!"

"If you really want to try and contain Ira rather than wait, we can simply try using the Fenton thermos" Dani suggested, prompting Vlad to angrily ask "Why didn't you just do that in the beginning!?"

"Shush!" Dani quieted him down before explaining "Two reasons: One, unlike most of the ghosts we fight, Ira tends to jump around too erratically for me to get good aim on him and two, even if I did manage to suck him up, the thermos is already almost full and with Ira's brute strength and power, I didn't want to risk having him burst out of the thermos and release all the other ghosts in there."

"Your highness, we think Ira is starting to fade!" A soldier informed Dani.

Taking another look from behind the rock, Dani saw Ira panting and wheezing with every punch he threw and every blast that he fired. His movements were becoming more sluggish with each passing second and he seemed to be growing clumsier as well. Seeing that it wouldn't be long, Dani urged the soldier lending his voice to keep the illusion going.

"Tsk, what a shame," The red shirt berated Ira as the latter was on the verge of collapsing of exhaustion. "I honestly expected more from you, such a disappointment"

Screeching with what could only be described as pure, unbridled rage, Ira put all of his remaining strength into one final punch, that predictably went straight through the hologram and sent Ira tumbling to the ground. Too tired to stand back up, Ira instead incoherently grumbled to himself before falling asleep. As soon as Ira was down and out, Dani deactivated the hologram projectors. For a few minutes, nobody moved, wanting to wait to make absolutely sure that Ira was incapacitated. Taking a chance, Danielle approached the fallen specter to get an up close look for herself and indeed confirmed that he was unconscious.

"Phase One Complete" Dani said to herself as she and everyone present breathed a sigh of relief.

None dared to touch Ira for fear of waking him up again. None except Plasmius, that is, who as soon as hearing that Ira was down, tossed his net over the beast and twisted the knob on his remote. Almost instantly, deadly electricity coursed through the net and into Ira, causing him to wake up and let out a strangled screech as he started writhing around.

"What're you doing!?" Dani asked angrily as Plasmius cranked up the voltage slightly.

"I'm not taking any chances!" Plasmius explained. "We need to make sure that it isn't going to be a threat anymore."

Unfortunately for Plasmius, his net wasn't as effective as he expected as it didn't keep Ira from slowly rising to his feet, despite the agonizing pain he was in. In fact, it only seemed to piss Ira off even more and that was never a good thing. Vlad was undeterred however and simply continued turning up the voltage until it was at maximum output. For a brief minute, it seemed like it would work as Ira dropped back to his knees. But not one to accept defeat and seeing nothing but red, the barbarian bit into the net with his razor sharp fangs and began tearing it apart.

"What?! Impossible!" Vlad stated in shock as Ira slowly reduced the trap to fibers littering the ground.

After destroying the trap net and seemingly rejuvenated by the electricity rather than weakened by it, Ira let out a triumphant yell and pounded his chest. With eerie swiftness, his head turned in the direction of Dani, Vlad, and the others, a sinister slasher smile slowly spreading across his face.

**In the Next Chapter:**

**_Growling in irritation, Ira caught a charging Danielle with a kick just below the chin before seemingly flying at Dani to attack her. Instead, he surprised her by going intangible and flying through her, making a beeline for the Ghost Zone's exit. Realizing his intent, Dani hurried and managed to grab Ira by one of his legs, wrapping herself around the appendage and holding on for dear life in an attempt to hold Ira back and prevent him from escaping. The barbarian wouldn't be deterred so easily however and started kicking Dani repeatedly in he face with his free leg, busting open Dani's lip and nearly giving her a black eye in the process. Dani was just as stubborn however and maintained her hold on his leg, refusing to release her grip. Ira continued flying towards the Portal, slowly dragging Dani along for the ride. Growing angrier and angrier with each passing second at Dani's interference and tried once again to kick Dani off of him. Dani dodged the kick and grabbed a hold of that leg, holding both legs in a tight bear hug. Danielle's distraction allowed Plasmius to recover from the attack and return to the fight, striking Ira with a hard punch to the face, staining Plasmius' right hand with ectoplasm. Sensing another electrical attack coming, Ira fought with all his might to free himself of Danielle's grip, managing to evade another Ghost Stinger just in the knick of time, resulting in Dani being on the receiving end of the attack instead, neutralizing her for the moment. Stretching his limbs to ludicrous lengths, Ira hit both Danielle and Plasmius with a punch to the face before bashing their heads together and making one last attempt at a getaway. He found much more success this time as Plasmius and Dani were too disoriented to stop him this time. A lone soldier stood in the way of Ira's freedom and he was quickly dispatched when Ira impaled him through the chest with his clawed hand, causing him to disintegrate into smoke._**

**Damnit, Vlad! We were so close to resolving this storyline without having things get out of hand! Not only that, but you denied Dani her time to shine, save the day and prove that she didn't need Danny or Sam to be the hero. You had one job, man! ONE JOB! You couldn't let your… hmm, I don't even know if I can call this 'ego' or 'rage/ wrath', whatever. You couldn't let your narcissism go for even one hour could you? It's like you grabbed the Dragon Ball of Stupidity that makes all the Z Warriors make stupid decisions! And because of that, now you've doomed us all!**

**Peter: Ira's going to destroy us all! Destroy us all! Destroy us all! Destroy us all! Destroy us all!**

**While Peter's off on that tangent, I'd like to thank you all for continuing to tune it. Things are only going to get crazier for here, now that the trap's been ruined. I'm going to be honest, even I can't possibly justify or even try to justify Vlad's stupidity here or what was even going through his head when he did what he did… and I'm the author of this story! Perhaps Plasmius is growing more and more ax crazy (that might prove to be a problem in the future), maybe Ira's bloodlust and viciousness is somehow subtly influencing him? Or maybe he just made the stupid rash mistake of choosing revenge before reason. I promise you, everything will be explained in the near future. For right now, whatever the reason is, there will be severe ramifications as you'll see in the next few chapters. What's going to happen from here? You'll have to stick around to find out! I've been your gracious host Timothy D and I'd like to wish you all a good day. Peace out!**

**A/N: The Next Update Will Be March 1st.**


	40. Nice Job Breaking It, Villain

**God Save The Queen Chapter 39: Nice Job Breaking It, ****Hero**** Villain!**

Having ripped his temporary restraints to shreds, Ira simply snarled while sporting that sinister smirk with his eyes. Everyone stood in silence for a few seconds that seemed like hours, waiting for the creature to make his move. As if sensing their anticipation, Ira's smile widened into a full on slasher smile before it let out a low growl that sounded like laughter. Plasmius made the first move, going to electrocute Ira once again, but the latter ducked out of he way with catlike quickness as if expecting it. Interestingly, instead of attacking Plasmius, Ira instead leapt over his head and for a brief moment, Dani thought she possibly saw a glimmer of fear in his eyes. Said expression quickly vanished as soon as Ira got behind Plasmius and swiped at the back of his head, sending Vlad flying, colliding hard into the ground and sliding a good several meters before coming to a halt. With Vlad neutralized for the moment, Ira went for his next targets and sprang at an unsuspecting soldier, tackling him to the ground and laying into him with animalistic swipes to the face with his claws. The soldier screamed and futilely tries fighting back using his mace, but Ira snatched it out of his hand and tossed it aside. More soldiers jumped in to assist their comrade while the Knights made sure the area was secure and Dani tried pulling the creature off herself. With a mighty claw swipe, Ira sent her flying backwards and continued his assault on the poor soldier. Either getting bored or wanting a new chew toy, he turned his attention to the other guards present, preparing to attack before a double team ghost blast from Dani and Plasmius surprised him and for the first time, actually seemed to inflict some significant damage on him, although it wasn't clear if they're attacks only packed the punch they did because Ira was weakened by the electrified net. Regardless, knowing they'd only stand a chance if they continued using coordinated double team attacks, the two halfas nailed Ira with a double punch to the face, sending the beast flying almost over the horizon and into a pillar, that toppled onto his head. The two halfas both pounced at Ira, intending to continue their attack, but the angry spirit had enough wits left to hastily move out of their way. In a move that surprised everyone, rather than attack, the creature snarled and made a hasty retreat. Curious, Dani and Plasmius quickly followed after him, wondering if the previously though to be feral beast actually had a plan.

The two struggled to stay on Ira's trail as the ghost sped through the Ghost Zone without a care in the world, literally plowing through whatever was in his way from doors to other dimensions to islands to large rocks. The implacable monster gained quite the lead on his pursuers Vince they had to dodge aforementioned obstacles while trying to keep up with him. After a few minutes, both Dani and Plasmius noticed that the path Ira was taking was quite familiar and for good reason. Ira was trying to escape through the Masters Ghost Portal into the real world. Having no other choice but to stop him then and there, Plasmius used a long ranged ghost stinger to temporarily stun Ira. The attack not only stunned Ira but also seemed to almost knock him out. Not willing to let up, Dani and Plasmius double teamed the beast once again with a flurry of punches to be face. It still wasn't enough as Ira lashed out with both arms, intending to impale the duo with his sharp claws. Instead, he grazed Dani's left shoulder and just barely missed slicing Plasmius' jugular. With a spinning round house kick, he sent Plasmius spiraling downwards and almost knocked him out cold, once again leaving Dani alone with the monster. This time, Dani didn't waste any time and hit Ira with a powerful ecto blast. Dani knew it wouldn't hurt him so instead the blast was only meant to knock Ira further away from the Fenton Portal and into the real world. Dani swiftly followed after the monster, hitting him with a hard right handed punch to the face that knocked him even backwards. Dani continued hammering him with lefts and rights while he sluggishly tried to block the blows. In the end though, Dani knew that it was a losing battle as she couldn't possibly hope to keep Ira on the ropes forever. Still, she pushed herself.

"Come on, if I can hold him back just a little bit longer," Dani thought to herself even as she exhausted herself wailing on Ira, who could only screech and growl in frustration as every attempt he made at deflecting Dani's punches failed miserably.

Just when Dani thought she couldn't keep up the attack anymore, the cavalry arrived in the form of the royal guards, who hooked Ira's wrists with neon green hog catch ropes and tried to hold him back. Still reeling from the effects of both Vlad's Ghost stinger and Dani's brutal punches, Ira could only weakly pull at the restraints for a while and Dani wondered if perhaps capturing the beats would truly be that easy. She should've known otherwise as Ira utilized his brute strength to toss the soldiers attempting to restrain him around like rag dolls. With prowess Danielle hadn't previously seen out of the barbaric brute, Ira nailed one of the soldiers with a spinning roundhouse kick to the head, sending the poor ghost sailing into the distance. Acting quickly and as if on autopilot, Ira fired a blast at Plasmius to incapacitate him momentarily. Looking closely, Dani noticed that the blast held less of a punch than his other attacks as if Ira was weakened more than he was willing to let on. With a burst of speed and strength, Dani kicked Ira in the face as hard as she could, sending him flying backwards a couple of meters. The beast recovered quickly and Dani responded with a point blank ectoblast to the face before trying once again to pull off a ghost stinger, only semi-succeeding. The result was Ira letting out an agonized groan, the first time he had shown signs of being in pain.

"Looks like we're finally getting somewhere," Dani said as she hammered Ira over the head with a double fisted axe handle, sending Ira hurtling in a downward spiral before he managed to correct himself.

Growling in irritation, Ira caught a charging Danielle with a kick just below the chin before seemingly flying at Dani to attack her. Instead, he surprised her by going intangible and flying through her, making a beeline for the Ghost Zone's exit. Realizing his intent, Dani hurried and managed to grab Ira by one of his legs, wrapping herself around the appendage and holding on for dear life in an attempt to hold Ira back and prevent him from escaping. The barbarian wouldn't be deterred so easily however and started kicking Dani repeatedly in he face with his free leg, busting open Dani's lip and nearly giving her a black eye in the process. Dani was just as stubborn however and maintained her hold on his leg, refusing to release her grip. Ira continued flying towards the Portal, slowly dragging Dani along for the ride. Growing angrier and angrier with each passing second at Dani's interference and tried once again to kick Dani off of him. Dani dodged the kick and grabbed a hold of that leg, holding both legs in a tight bear hug. Danielle's distraction allowed Plasmius to recover from the attack and return to the fight, striking Ira with a hard punch to the face, staining Plasmius' right hand with ectoplasm. Sensing another electrical attack coming, Ira fought with all his might to free himself of Danielle's grip, managing to evade another Ghost Stinger just in the knick of time, resulting in Dani being on the receiving end of the attack instead, neutralizing her for the moment. Stretching his limbs to ludicrous lengths, Ira hit both Danielle and Plasmius with a punch to the face before bashing their heads together and making one last attempt at a getaway. He found much more success this time as Plasmius and Dani were too disoriented to stop him this time. A lone soldier stood in the way of Ira's freedom and he was quickly dispatched when Ira impaled him through the chest with his clawed hand, causing him to disintegrate into smoke.

Laughing maniacally, Ira escaped through Plasmius' ghost Portal and into the real world while the two halfas could only look on in horror. The two halfas quickly recovered and chased after Ira, but it was too late. The beast had managed to escape into the real world and with his unmatched savagery, who knew how much havoc he could wreak or how many people could be killed. Dani and Plasmius emerged through the portal and in Plasmius' lab, but unfortunately, Ira had already managed to escape without a trace. The two were surprised that Ira hadn't destroyed anything on his way out, but that also proved to be a problem as it left them with no clues as to his whereabouts. Dani wasted no time calling out Plasmius on his stupidity.

"Great going, fruit loop!" Dani chastised the former billionaire. "Thanks to you, that thing is now running around rampant somewhere in earth!"

Remaining calm, Plasmius changed back into his human form and replied "I'll admit my actions were a little rash and reckless"

The fact that Plasmius was admitting he'd made a mistake left Dani in shock, but that didn't stop her from quipping "Only a little?"

"Don't get smart with me, child" Vlad retorted, dusting himself off. "As I was saying, what I did might've been reckless, but your plan of subduing Ira hinged on it staying asleep long enough for Daniel and Samantha to return. We couldn't having Ira wake up with his strength replenished more than before and possibly smarter than before"

"We only needed to keep him unconscious for a couple of hours!" Dani replied, not willing to let Vlad get away on such a weak argument. "We didn't need to go about trying to capture and seal him back up ourselves!"

"We can argue about who's at fault later!" Vlad changed the subject. "Right now, we need to focus all of our attention on finding the beast before something bad happens!"

Dani paused for a moment before saying "You planned this, didn't you?"

"What?" Vlad asked, blindsided by Dani's accusation.

"This is all part of some sort of plan of yours, isn't it?" Dani elaborated. "You intentionally freed Ira so you could use as part of your scheme for world domination, then played the roll of victim to lure me, Danny, and Sam into a trap so he could kill us, didn't you?"

"I've already told you, I had nothing to do with this!" Plasmius argued. "If I did, you can believe that I wouldn't wasted time allying with you and would've instead had Ira kill you on the spot rather that waste time gaining your trust. The sooner we get this monster back in his cage, the sooner we can get back to trying to kill each other and I can assure you, I'm looking forward to that!"

Sighing and still not knowing whether to believe Vlad or not, Dani decided to call Danny and see if they had gotten back from their mission. She didn't think that anyone could be stupid enough to make the mistake Vlad did, but then again it was Plasmius she was talking about; someone who had a history of releasing forces far beyond his power that he underestimated and thought he could control. Dani almost jumped for joy when she heard Danny's familiar ring tone.

She was even more excited when Danny actually answered his phone, greeting her with a simple "Hello?".

"There you are, where have you guys been?" Dani asked before explaining "I've been trying to get in contact with you guys all day! What happened?"

"It's a crazy story," Danny explained. "We'll explain everything later, is everything okay?"

"We've got a bit of a problem," Dani replied.

"What kind of problem?" Danny asked in response before heading another voice that he didn't expect nor want to hear for a very long time.

"A kind of problem that we're the cause of and that threatens to destroy us all," Vlad said.

**In the Next Chapter:**

"**_I'd love to come along," Tucker said. "But I have to get back to City Hall. I probably have a ton of paperwork to go through and bills to look at." Tucker kept his Fenton phones however and told the three "I'll be in touch though. Contact me if things get out of hand or if this is all just a ruse by Plasmius."_**

**_"Will do," Sam said before she, Danny, and Valerie set out for Vlad's mansion to get to the bottom of what was going on. "Knowing Vlad, we're probably going to need to call you"_**

**_With that, the four departed from the Clocktower while Clockwork looked on with a smile, proud of all of them, shifting from his child form to his adult form. While Dani and Plasmius may not have known what the outcome would be regarding Ira and Danny and friends weren't even aware of what was going on yet, for Clockwork, the result was a foregone conclusion. With the combined strength of the three halfas and the ghost hunter, the techno geek mayor's guidance from the sidelines as well as technological prowess and the unbreakable spirit and resolve of all five, brought together by their friendship, the power they possessed was incredible. Ira didn't stand a chance._**

**And… that's what Danielle was up to while the others were off fighting Dan. So, now that we're back up to speed, the next chapter will pick up where Chapter 32 (The Time Has Come/ Your Time Is Up) left off. What's going to happen next from here? How will Danny and Sam react to the news of Ira? Will they be able to track down the brute before he causes untold death and destruction? What direction will this storyline go off into? Why am I asking you all of these questions? You'll have to tune in next time to find out. Fun fact: The title of this chapter was originally supposed to go to the previous chapter as this chapter and the previous one were one and the same before I decided to split them in two due to the length. I apologize if this chapter is a little too short, but I thought this chapter would work better separate from the other one. With all of that said, I'm Timothy D and I wish you a good day! Peace out!**

**A/N: The Next Update Will Be March 15th**


	41. Not So Tough

**God Save the Queen Chapter 40: Not So Tough**

Upon hearing Plasmius' voice in the background, Danny naturally and involuntarily tensed up. He knew that Plasmius would eventually return like he always did, but he didn't expect him to be back this soon. Was he holding Dani hostage in some sort of trap? Had he hurt her, or forced her to make the call? And what was he talking about something that threatened to destroy them all? What had he done this time? Danny wasted no times asking questions about what was going on.

"Plasmius, what're you doing back so soon?" Danny asked angrily, causing Sam, Tucker, and Valerie's ears to perk up at the mere mention of Vlad's name. "Looking to get your butt kicked again? I swear if you've harmed even a hair on Dani's head, I'll-"

"Calm down, Daniel" Vlad tried to calm him down as he took the phone from Danielle. "It's nothing like that, I promise. We have a huge problem that requires the help of you and Samantha."

"Just what've you done this time, Plasmius?" Sam asked in an irritated voice, having overheard the entire conversation thanks to her superhuman hearing.

"I haven't done anything!" Vlad defended himself. "At least, I'm not entirely to blame for what's going on!"

Dani piped in the background, yelling "You can totally be blamed for the current situation however!". Vlad shushed her, saying "Quiet!" before returning his attention to Danny and Sam. "Seeing as you two played just as big a role in what's happening as I did, Danielle and I are going to need your help in dealing with this matter. Meet me at my mansion where I'll explain everything."

"Yeah, because that totally doesn't sound like a trap" Danny said sarcastically, prompting Vlad to reply "If this were a trap, I wouldn't waste time with the formalities. Now get over here, pronto!" before hanging up.

"What's going on?" Tucker asked, he and Valerie having only heard Dani talking briefly and Vlad's name being mentioned. "What's Vlad up to this time?"

"He says this isn't a trap," Danny explained, putting his phone in his pocket. "But he and Danielle said there's a situation they need my and Sam's help with and told us to meet them at his mansion. I don't know what's going on, but naturally I don't have a good feeling about it."

"I'll come with you," Valerie volunteered. "Knowing Plasmius, he could have something up his sleeve and might've fooled Dani into believing him"

"Are you sure you want to come along?" Danny asked as all four of them were still nursing injuries from their fight with Dan not too long ago. "You're still a little banged up from our fight, are you sure coming along will be good for your health?"

"I'll be fine, I promise" Valerie insisted, even as she walked with a slight limp. "Besides, I still have unfinished business with Vlad of my own. Now might be a good time to resolve them"

"I'd love to come along," Tucker said. "But I have to get back to City Hall. I probably have a ton of paperwork to go through and bills to look at." Tucker kept his Fenton phones however and told the three "I'll be in touch though. Contact me if things get out of hand or if this is all just a ruse by Plasmius."

"Will do," Sam said before she, Danny, and Valerie set out for Vlad's mansion to get to the bottom of what was going on. "Knowing Vlad, we're probably going to need to call you"

With that, the four departed from the Clocktower while Clockwork looked on with a smile, proud of all of them, shifting from his child form to his adult form. While Dani and Plasmius may not have known what the outcome would be regarding Ira and Danny and friends weren't even aware of what was going on yet, for Clockwork, the result was a foregone conclusion. With the combined strength of the three halfas and the ghost hunter, the techno geek mayor's guidance from the sidelines as well as technological prowess and the unbreakable spirit and resolve of all five, brought together by their friendship, the power they possessed was incredible. Ira didn't stand a chance.

After exiting through the Fenton Portal in Amity Park, it wasn't too long of a flight before Danny, Sam, and Valerie arrived at Vlad's mansion in Wisconsin. Wasting little time, they headed to the basement, where sure enough, Vlad and Dani were watching CCTV footage while waiting for them. Upon closer inspection, Danny and Sam noticed hat the CCTV footage was monitoring Amity Park, as if Vlad wasn't creepy enough.

"Well, way to keep us all waiting" Plasmius said sternly to the two halfas before noticing Valerie and saying in a noticeably nervous tone "Oh and I see you've brought along an unexpected guest. Just great"

"So what's this problem we caused "that threatens to destroy us all"?" Danny asked.

Vlad walked over to his super computer and brought up a holographic image of Ira's destroyed tomb and said "If you recall our most recent fight, you'll remember that we briefly did battle on this island." Danny and Sam nodded and Vlad continued. "Well it turns out that there was someone else living on that island." Vlad then showed the trio a holographic image of Ira and Dani took over.

"This ghost called Ira and for the past several thousand years, he was imprisoned in the tomb on this island," Dani explained as Vlad switched back to a simulation of the island.

"It was during our fight that we ended up accidentally losing destroying the tomb keeping him locked away from the rest of the Ghost Zone and the world" Vlad explained as he played back a clip from his and Danny's fight, specifically the part where he pile drove Danny into the ground from about 100 meters in the air with the resulting shockwave that destroyed Ira's prison.

Danny couldn't help but ask "Why do you have video footage of our fight?"

"Pay attention!" Both Vlad and Sam said simultaneously, surprising them both. Vlad continued explaining "Anyway, because of your recklessness, Ira ended up escaping from his prison and now he threatens to destroy whatever's in its wake"

"He doesn't look as dangerous as you described him," Valerie chimed in upon seeing the newest enemy.

"Well looks can certainly be deceiving" Vlad replied. "This is no ordinary ghost. This is a ghost with unbridled strength and the mind of a savage. He fights like a barbarian, behaves like a rabid animal and is seemingly immune to all forms of attack… except for one: electricity, but even that doesn't keep him down for very long."

"So where is he now?" Asked Danny, wanting to find and capture the creature as soon as possible.

"That's why we need your help" Dani explained. "Thanks to Vlad, Ira managed to escape into the real world and we have no idea where he could be. We need to find and neutralize him before anyone gets hurt."

"Hmm, doesn't sound like too hard of a task," said Danny.

"Believe me, finding Ira in and of itself is easier said than done," Dani replied.

"But capturing it is something else entirely as he becomes even more dangerous and unpredictable when cornered or trapped." Vlad said, before pointing to the two still unhealed puncture wounds on his neck. "As if that's not bad enough, he has a bad habit of biting when people get too close."

"Looks like we've got our work cut out for us" Sam said. "Come on, let's not waste time"

With that, Sam, Danny, Dani, and Valerie all set out to look for the beast while Vlad stayed behind to monitor the CCTVs in case something came up regarding Ira's whereabouts. To say the four of them weren't happy about having to work with Vlad would be an understatement and they were pleasantly surprised/ relieved when he decided to stay behind. Vlad wasn't exactly thrilled about having to work with his enemies either. He'd much rather blast them into oblivion than team with them, but there would be time for that as soon as this pest was taken care of. Wondering what he had done to deserve this punishment, Vlad remained focused on the screens while simultaneously trying to track Ira down with his super computer. Frustration and anger started to grow after a few more minutes of failure until Vlad felt himself almost seething with rage. Snapping himself out of it, the disgraced fruit loop fixed himself a cup of tea to calm himself down.

Danny, Sam, Dani, and Valerie on the other hand were explaining the situation to Tucker while they went on their search, split into pairs. Dani and Valerie returned to Amity Park right away, thinking that its knack for ghosts would be he perfect hunting ground for a ghost like Ira while Danny and Sam combed Wisconsin looking for any signs of the angry spirit. They were currently about 60 miles away from Vlad's mansion and weren't having much better luck.

"So Vlad's unleashed some uncontrollable monster of the week and it's up to you to stop it? What number is this, 30? Forty two?" Tucker quipped. "Do you think he's ever going to learn from his mistakes?"

"I highly doubt it," Valerie replied. "And unfortunately for us, we still haven't seen any sign of the monster anywhere in Amity Park."

"We're not having much luck over here, either" Danny informed the others as he and Sam flew over a wooded area, carefully scanning the ground for anything that looked out of place.

The couple were unaware that the pale grey ghost was lurking in the trees just below them, stalking his soon to be prey. The beast licked its lips and snarled as he watched the couple fly overhead before making his move. With catlike quickness, Ira nailed the couple with a high speed flying head butt, sending Danny and Sam plummeting out of the sky and onto the cold hard ground several meters below. The impact of the crash landing knocked the wind out of the Royal couple, making them vulnerable when Ira planted his feet in their chest, driving even more air from the lungs. Wasting no time fighting back, the two retaliated with dual eye beams, sending Ira flying backwards and into a tree.

"Scratch that," Sam said. "Looks like we didn't have to look very far to find him." Ira lunged at her, assuming her to be the weaker of the halfas and thus an easier target. He quickly found. That despite being weaker, Sam was not to be taken lightly as she dodged his attack and hit him in the back of the head with a nifty spinning roundhouse kick, sending the ghost once again crashing into a tree, this time face first.

"Where are you guys?" Valerie asked. "We'll try to get there as quickly as possible"

"No need" Danny replied, trying to keep Ira on the ground by firing blast after blast. Ira hissed and snarled as every attempt to get back up was thwarted by Danny's ghost ray that in addition to keeping him pinned down, left him disoriented and defenseless. "I'm pretty sure we can handle this guy"

"Don't try to take him on alone," Dani advised them. "Trust me, he's a lot more resilient than he looks at first glance"

"Don't worry, we're not going to take any chances" Sam said as she joined Danny in keeping Ira grounded by tying him down with her vines. "We're going to suck into the thermos at the first chance we get"

"Alright, I guess you've got it under control" Dani said. "Just be careful and beware of any tricks Ira might have"

Ira didn't plan on going down so easily and after wriggling his left arm free, deflected one of Danny's blasts back into his face. Before San could react, Ira fired a blast in her direction. While Sam manages to dodge the attack, the split second distraction allowed Ira to break free of the vines restraining him and get back in the fight. Utilizing the shackles around his wrists, Ira whipped Sam in the side of the head with his heavy, thick chains, just barely avoiding striking her in the temple. The attack almost knocked Sam out cold, which bought her a bit of time as Ira turned his attention to Danny, hitting the ghost king with a hard punch to the stomach followed by a brutal slap to the face that sent Danny crashing into a tree. Shaking their head of the cobwebs, Danny and Sam simultaneously went at Ira, going for a double punch to the side of the head. Ira caught them by the neck with his chains and bashed their heads against each other, knocking them for a loop. The royal couple wouldn't be defeated so easily and compared to Dan, this chump was child's play. With a coordinated double blast, the two sent Ira hurtling into the ground.

Ira groaned, down to his hands and knees and again tried a sneak attack by launching himself at the pair. What he got instead was another double punch to the face that sent him into a tree. Ira bounced off the tree into another double attack, this time in the form of a forearm strike to the face. Refusing to stay down, Ira swung his chains around like a madman (not that he wasn't one already) trying to hit the two with any attack he could pull off. Danny and Sam gracefully dodged each and every single chain swipe, before catching a hold of his chains and using them to slam Ira repeatedly into the ground like a basketball, while the homicidal ghost could only hiss, scream, and yell in protest. When they finally finished up, Ira still got back up for more, determined to rip the couple apart limb from limb. By this point, he was foaming at the mouth, overcome by pure visceral rage. Ira began pounding his fists into the ground and stamping his feet like a toddler throwing a temper tantrum, all the while, screaming and screeching at the top of his lungs. The only thing missing was tears of rage and he'd look like a kid mad they didn't get what they wanted for Christmas. It was oddly both sad and amusing to see at the same time. Even Danny and Sam were taking a little bit of pity on the monster.

"Ugh, and now I just feel bad" Sam said as she and Danny cautiously approached the beast.

"I know, right?" Danny said. "It's like beating up a small child." Danny then placed his hand on the back of Ira's head and said "Let's end this, shall we?" and administering his ghost stinger, knocking Ira out cold and allowing him to be contained within the Fenton thermos. After defeating Ira, the King and Queen fell back onto the ground in exhaustion, trying to catch their breath.

"This has been quite a day, hasn't it?" Sam asked as the two lied on their back looking up at the sky.

"Tell me about," Danny replied. "First day of senior year, fighting evil future me, and then this."

"I guess there truly is no rest for the weary" Sam said, sitting up. "So, up for a race back to Amity Park?"

"You're on!" Danny said before getting a head start and taking off at the speed of sound.

"Hey!" Sam yelled as she sprang up and chased after him. "No fair getting a head start, you cheater!" She said playfully.

"Don't get so mad, it's not like you stood a chance to begin with" Danny yelled back at her.

"I'll make you eat those words!" Sam replied, quickly catching up to and surpassing Danny. "Hi Danny! Bye Danny!"

"Get back here!" Danny said, speeding up. The couple's race was very close throughout, but in the end, Sam managed to get the victory, beating Danny by a good 30 seconds. "The only reason you won is because I let you win" Danny said.

"Sure you did," Sam replied. "Nobody likes a sore loser, you know."

"Nobody likes a sore winner either" Danny retorted, adding "So how does it feel finally beating me in a race? What's the scoreboard at now? I'm pretty sure it's still Danny- 10, Sam- 1."

Sam responded by playfully flipping Danny the finger, to which Danny replied with a coy grin "Well if you still have the energy for it, I'd love to"

"Not tonight, playboy" Sam replied. "I'm tired and it's been a long day"

"You said it, I can't wait to go home and-" Danny said, being interrupted by a yawn. "And catch some Z's"

The two kisses each other goodnight and headed home. Danny placed the thermos containing Ira in the basement, saying "I'll deal with you tomorrow. Right now, I desperately need some sleep."

The thermos shook and rattled as soon as Danny turned off the light and headed upstairs. An animalistic low growl could barely be heard within the container as the angry spirit struggled to get out.

**In the Next Chapter:**

**_Dani headed over to FentonWorks at around 11 to check up on Ira. She found nobody home and assumed that Jack and Maddie were out on a job as she headed down to the basement. It didn't take her long to find the thermos sitting on a desk in the back left corner of the room, just as Danny described it. Dani carefully picked it up and took a couple of minutes to inspect it and make sure there were no dents or impressions made from inside of it. The last thing she or anyone else needed was for Ira to break out of the cylindrical container and start tearing things apart. Upon seeing that the thermos hadn't sustained any damage, Dani cautiously put it back down on the table._**

**Well, that was kinda anticlimactic. Our heroes return and almost immediately put an end to the threat Ira poses. It feels a little bit like a ripoff. I mean, the big bad monster defeated like the rest by the Fenton thermos. Something tells me that this isn't over, but what do I know, I'm only the writer. The next chapter will be a relatively normal day for our heroes. Can it and will it stay that way? You'll have to tune in to find out. I've been your gracious host, Timothy D! Peace out and have a nice day!**


	42. A Normal Day?

**God Save The Queen Chapter 41: A Normal Day?**

Following the fight with Ira, Danny awoke the next morning and went to check on the thermos. He found the cannister bouncing around on the table, with a gravelly voice screaming "HELP! HELP! LET ME OUT!"

"You can talk?" Danny asked Ira.

"Yes, Yes, I just wanna be free!" Ira screamed from inside the thermos.

"There is no way I'm letting you out" Danny told him. "You're insane!"

"Hey, I'd like to see you spend over a dozen millennia sealed up and not have a serious case of cabin fever." Ira retorted.

"I'm not letting you out" Danny refused.

"C'mon, c'moooooooooooooooooooooooooon" Ira whined. "I promise I won't destroy anything"

"No" Danny said.

"Please?"

"No"

"Please"

"No"

"Please"

"No"

"Pretty pleaaaaaaase with sugar lumps on top"

"No." Danny stated sternly.

"I'll give you a double baconator pizza if you let me out" Ira made one last ditch effort.

"K" Danny gave in, before unscrewing the lid.

"Ha!" Ira said, sucker punching Danny in the face. "Now you won't get your pizza and I'm going to take over the world! Sucker!"

"Damnit, I can't believe I fell for that" Danny said before chasing after him. "Hey Ira, eat an ectoblast!"

"No, you eat one!" Ira said, deflecting the blast back at Danny.

"K" Danny replied, taking the blast head on and crashing into a hot dog cart. He grabbed a bottle of ketchup and sprayed it into Ira's eyes. "I'll ketchup with you later"

"Argh, prick!" Ira yelled before being kicked into a billboard. "Ow! Double prick!"

"Ugh, bored now" Ira said before flying off. He saw a little girl and tried terrorizing her, only for the child to laugh, play "Hey Mr. Wonderful" on her ipad, and start dancing. Ira didn't know why but he was overcome with the urge to dance and joined the child.

"Hey, that looks like fun. Can I join in too?" Danny asked.

"Sure" Ira said as the two joined the little girl in dancing.

Suddenly, Sam.

"Danny, we're going to be late for-" Sam said before Danny interjected.

"Can't talk, dancing" Danny said, dancing horribly with the grace of a wet noodle. "Aw yeah, feel my funky rhythm"

Sam turned directly to the reader and said "Hey, if you can't beat em', join em'"

Soon the four were joined by the goddamned Ninja Turtles of all people who got lost on their way back to New York from Aruba after Michaelangelo caused Donatello's plane to crash. Not long after that they were joined by Solid Snake, who was passing by in his 2006 Honda Cardboard box. He brought with him Mewtwo who was interested in the dance party going on. Five sentient toasters joined in on the fray because you know what they say: All toasters toast toast. Pretty soon, every named and unnamed character in the Danny Phantom universe had joined the dance party, having the time of their lives. All of Butch Hartman's characters were soon taking part in the party of complete chaos.

"Aw yeah, this is happening!" Danny exclaimed. "I'll play with you some other time"

"Hey! That's my line!" Said Sonic The Hedgehog, who came from out of nowhere accompanied by Tails, Knuckles, Amy, and BREAKDANCING EGGMAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAN! as well as fellow Sega alumni NiGHTS and spin dashed into Danny. "Looks like you're too slow"

Not to let their rivals outdo them, the Super Mario Bros joined in. The final video game cameo in this impropmptu insane came from Crash Bandicoot, who did his signature "Crash Dance". Everyone was having a blast until they all heard a "WRRRRRYYYYY!" And looked up to see Dio fucking Brando descending from the heavens on a steam roller, which he landed on top of Danny, who crawled out unscathed thanks to his ghost powers.

"Mind if I select the next song?" Dio asked.

"No problem," everyone said.

"Great," Dio said before playing the song "Holy Diver". "This is my jam".

Everyone danced and partied like there was no tomorrow, with the dancing eventually devolving into everyone just doing repetitive hip rotations. At least, until the noise ended up messing up the high of the omnipotent Lord Popo. Popo looked down and upon seeing the commotion, proclaimed "Okay, fuck this!" before he preceded to destroy the entire earth. Everyone died. The End. Not really though, because they all were sent to Hell where Mr. Popo made them his bitches for all eternity.

**Alright, you know what, I'm just fucking with you. April fools everybody! Now here's the real chapter.**

With Ira seemingly taken care of before he could even be a problem, Danny woke up the next morning without a care in the world. He didn't have time to take Ira back to his stone prison tomb before school started, but he did have enough time to at least check on the feral ghost and make sure he was still in the thermos. After confirming that Ira was still safely sealed away in the thermos, Danny showered and got dressed for his second day of school. He promised himself that he'd deal with Ira when he got home from school. The beast in the thermos however had other ideas. It had spent the entire night struggling and fighting within the cylindrical prison until he tired himself out and fell asleep. No matter what, he was not going to be locked away again.

Danny briefly pondered on whether or not he should take the thermos with him to school just so he could keep a close eye on. In the end, he decided against it, not wanting to take the chance of Ira possibly escaping in a place with a lot of innocent bystanders. Before leaving to meet up with Sam, Danny placed a sticky note on the thermos so that his parents wouldn't possibly mistake the thermos as empty and release Ira yet again.

Danny arrived at Sam's house and as usual, lightly tapped on Sam's bedroom window. Sam opened her window and greeted Danny by leaning out and giving him a quick kiss on the cheek. She was almost fully dressed, save her feet, which were still bare, revealing she was wearing black toenail polish. Danny found that a bit odd as Sam wasn't exactly the type of girl who was big on painting her nails. She was still getting her hair in order when Danny arrived and Danny was surprised to see that rather than having it tied up in a ponytail like it usually was, Sam was letting her hair hang down. As a result, her raven black, luxurious hair flowed all the way down to her hips. Danny thought she looked quite adorable with her hair like that, but Sam thought otherwise which is why she usually kept it tied up.

"I don't know why you don't wear your hair down like that more often. It makes you look so adorable" Danny complimented his wife, making her blush. Danny loved it when her pale cheeks flooded with red.

"Hmm, maybe I'll start wearing it like this all the time, just for you" Sam said, smiling seductively at Danny, making him blush this time.

Before the two could have a romantic moment, Dani tossed a pillow at them, hitting Danny in the face. "Hey, could you please turn out the lights?" Danielle mumbled, still semi sleeping and wrapped up tightly in the bed sheets as the suns rays shined on her face through the window. Her parents couldn't help but look on with an amused smile as she looked so sweet, cute and innocent while wrapped up in and hanging onto the sheets as if for dear life. Danny flashed Sam a sly smirk before coming inside and slowly sneaking up to Dani's bedside.

"Dani, wake up, sweetie. Rise and shine." Danny said in an affectionate fatherly tone. "It's time for school"

"No it's not, school doesn't start for another… hour" Dani yawned, burying her face beneath the sheets and turning away from Danny.

"Looks like our little girl doesn't want to get up," Danny said.

"Why, whatever shall we do to wake her up?" Sam asked as she sneaked up on the other side of Dani's bed.

Before Dani knew what was happening, Danny and asks both pounced on her and started tickling her to wake her up. Danielle kicked, giggled and squirmed as her parents tickled her, tossing and turning only serving to get herself tangled and trapped in the sheets.

"Okay hehehe Okay! I'm awake hahaha!" Dani squealed, twisting about trying to get out from the sheets. Danny and Sam stopped tickling and let her get up as she sat up, yawned and asked groggily "What time is it?".

Dani's hair was a bit messy with some of it clinging to her face while the rest was frizzy and strewn about. She quickly shook her head, fixing up her hair slightly as she brushed her hair out of her face.

"It's 7:45," Danny said as he looked his watch to check the time.

"We better get going then," Sam said as she put on her socks and laced up her boots and changed into her ghost form. "Our first class starts in 15 minutes and we don't want to be late."

"Speaking of class, could you guys please find my birth certificate, date of birth, or something that proves my existence so I can enroll in school and have something to do rather than sit around all day bored while I wait for you to get out of school?" Dani asked as she stretched her limbs.

"I'm pretty sure we can get Tucker to create/ produce a birth certificate or some other documentation of your existence that can help you out," Danny assured her with a warm smile. "If you're looking for something to do though, I need you to head over to my place and keep an eye on the thermos containing Ira. Keep a close watch over it and let us know if he gets out again and make sure my parents don't accidentally end up letting him, okay?"

"So basically just babysit the thermos and make sure Ira doesn't get out again?" Dani asked before nodding and saying "I've got you covered!", giving the duo a thumbs up. It wasn't much, but it least it gave her something to do to pass the time she thought to herself.

"Alright, give us a call if you need anything," Sam said to Dani as she grabbed her backpack and prepared to head off.

"Wait a minute? You're going with your hair like that?" Dani asked in surprise when she saw Sam with her hair down.

"Yeah, what's wrong?" Sam replied, running her hand though her hair. "Do you not like the way it looks?"

"No, no, it looks fine" Dani told her. "It's just that I'm not used to seeing you have it down like that"

Danny and Sam then headed off to school, arriving at Casper High just seven minutes before the opening bell. Tucker was standing outside the door, waiting for them while a herd of students raced past him and inside, trying to avoid a tardy in their first class.

"There you guys are, class starts in almost five minutes," Tucker notified them before noticing Sam's hair and asking "Sam? Are you… feeling alright?"

"I'm fine, I just decided to wear let my hair down for a change," Sam said. She was getting a little bit annoyed at people's repetitive responses to the change in her hairstyle. "See, this is why I usually have my hair in a ponytail."

"Sorry, sorry!" Tucker apologized. "It's just that-"

"I know, you're not used to seeing my hair like this" Sam calmly interjected.

"So, I see you two survived your encounter with that Ira ghost creature," Tucker said before asking "How'd it go? Did you beat him or did he somehow get away?"

"We captured him using the Fenton thermos, but it wasn't easy" Danny told him.

"When is it ever easy?" Sam asked, tossing her hair aside as her bangs got in the way of her eyes, prompting her to ask "Seriously, how do other girls do this?", leading to Danny and Tucker struggling to stifle a giggle under their breath.

"Well at least this Ira situation is over," Danny said as the three headed to their respective first classes of the day.

###################

Dani headed over to FentonWorks at around 11 to check up on Ira. She found nobody home and assumed that Jack and Maddie were out on a job as she headed down to the basement. It didn't take her long to find the thermos sitting on a desk in the back left corner of the room, just as Danny described it. Dani carefully picked it up and took a couple of minutes to inspect it and make sure there were no dents or impressions made from inside of it. The last thing she or anyone else needed was for Ira to break out of the cylindrical container and start tearing things apart. Upon seeing that the thermos hadn't sustained any damage, Dani cautiously put it back down on the table.

"You know, it's actually a little funny" Dani spoke to Ira, taking a seat in front of the table so she could keep an eye on the thermos and the creature that had given her so much trouble the previous day. "As strong, feral, and tough as you were, you were still defeated like all the other ghosts by the Fenton thermos. Maybe you're not so fearsome after all"

She didn't know it, but inside the container, Ira was fighting like a raging demon, scratching and clawing, trying to bust out of the thermos no matter what. So far, he was still having no such luck, even as he rammed his entire body into the metal walls of the prison, failing to make even a small indention. The beast had been struggling on and off ever since he was first captured, tiring himself out and falling into a slumber before awakening and fighting for freedom once again until exhausting himself yet again, the cycle seemingly endlessly repeating. If Ira could be commended for one thing, it was that he absolutely refused to give up.

#########################

"So, do. you and Sam have any plans for tonight?" Tucker asked as he took his seat at the trio's usual table in the cafeteria.

"Well, first we have to take Ira back to his tomb and seal him up again" Danny said, his eyes searching for his wife. "After that, we don't have anything planned other than relaxing a little. These last few weeks have been hectic, having to deal with Plasmius, Box Ghost, Dan and his alternate timeline selves, and then Ira"

"You said it," Tucker agreed. "I don't know how you guys are still going or how you can keep going without collapsing"

Finally, Sam entered, the bangs in her hair obscuring her left eye. Danny smiled at her upon seeing her and she returned the smile as she took her seat.

"Is your hair still driving you crazy?" Tucker asked her, as she brushed her hair out of the way of her right eye.

"Actually, as the day goes on, it's getting easier to manage" Sam said before admitting "I might just keep it this way."

"Really?" Danny and Tucker asked, now certain that something was wrong with/ or bothering Sam, but too scared to ask her if everything was alright.

"Yeah," Sam said before putting their worries (slightly) to rest by telling them "As much as I hate to admit it, letting my hair down actually feels pretty comfortable. The only real problem is that it keeps getting in my face" Sam, remembering the couple's promise to Danielle, then said to Tucker "We need to ask you for a favor"

"Go ahead," Tucker said, stuffing his face with a slice of extra cheese pizza.

"Do you think you could produce papers documenting Danielle's birth/ existence?" Asked Sam.

"It might be a little difficult and it could take a while, but I don't think that's too tall of a task," Tucker replied, curiosity leading him to ask "Why do you need them?"

"Because Dani says she wants to start attending school so she has something to do while we're at school besides sitting around all day," Danny told him.

"Okay, I'll get to work on that as soon as I get to City Hall and let you know when I've got what you need," Tucker told them.

"I wonder what Danielle's up to right now," Sam said.

####################

Dani was still keeping watch over Ira's thermos. She could hear him growling and screeching whenever he was trying to fight his way out, the sound of his claws scraping the metallic sides of the thermos as well as the loud bangs and thuds whenever he slammed up against the walls. She could also hear his loud snoring whenever he fell asleep after struggling for a few minutes. Currently, he was sleeping, but Dani knew it wouldn't stay asleep for very long.

The thermos remained in the same position it had been in, although since Danielle arrived, Ira had managed to tip it over onto its side every once and while. Hours passed and Mr and Mrs. Fenton still hadn't returned and like any 12 year old girl would, Dani got bored of simply staring at the tin thermos. Periodically, she'd leave the basement for a few minutes to watch TV or grab a bite to eat whenever she got hungry. She'd come back to find the angry ghost still trapped in the thermos, which sat stationary on the desk, occasionally turned over on its side and rolling towards the edge of the table and onto the floor, requiring Dani to catch it to keep it from rolling off and onto the floor. At 3:30, Danny, Sam, and Tucker returned from school with Tucker intending to drop by real quick before heading to city hall. Forgetting about the thermos for a moment, Dani headed upstairs to greet them. She made the mistake of not bringing the thermos along with her.

As soon as she left, Ira went about trying to break free once again. With all his might, Ira slammed himself into the left side of the thermos before charging into the right side. He went back and forth, alternating between ramming the left and right sides of the thermos. The thermos rocked left and right until a final forceful push by Ira tilted it onto its side. Ira's work still wasn't done, however as he continued pushing against the side of the thermos, rolling it closer and closer to the edge of the table on which it sat. Without Dani being around to catch it this time, the thermos rolled over the side of the table and landed on its side and just so happened to land on the release button, freeing Ira from his imprisonment at long last. Ira let out a triumphant roar/ scream upon breaking free and immediately after that, completely destroyed the thermos that had held him with a powerful red blast, reducing it to burnt, black bits of scrap metal lying strewn about on the floor.

"Hey guys!" Dani said as she leaped into Danny's arms, embracing him in a tight hug.

"There's our little girl!" Danny greeted her in response, playfully ruffling her hair. "Did Ira give you any trouble?"

"Aside from grunting, screaming, and whining like a spoiled child, no" Dani told him. "How was school?"

"Boring." Tucker chimed in, joking "I don't know why you're so excited to attend school"

"At least it'll be a different kind of boring," Dani replied.

"No, not really," The trio replied in stereo.

Suddenly, the four heard a shrill shriek/ raspy wail emanating from the basement followed by the sound of a blast being fired. They all hurried down to the basement to find Ira free and standing over the charred remains of the Fenton thermos used to contain him. There was green ectoplasm dripping from his fingertips where he had worn down his claw like fingernails trying to claw his way out, his hair was wilder and even more unkempt than earlier and if it was possible, his eyes seemed more manic and crazy than before.

"I thought you said he didn't give you any trouble," Danny said to Danielle.

"He didn't!" Dani defended herself. "He must've gotten out when I went upstairs to meet you guys!"

"So that thing's Ira?!" Tucker asked upon seeing the wild ghost. He was surprised by what Ira actually looked like. Sure, he had been described as behaving rather animalistic, but Tucker didn't expect his physical appearance to fit such a personality so perfectly. Compared to the ghosts Danny had fought in the past, Ira looked like a man under demonic possession.

As soon as he saw the heroes, Ira fired a huge red blast at them with the obvious intent to kill. This struck Dani as odd seeing as Ira preferred playing with his victims and prolong their suffering rather than kill them quickly. Were it not for a combined triple shield from the three halfas, Ira's attack could've easily killed the four of them. Rather than stick around and try to fight, Ira instead chose to flee, going intangible and flying out through the ceiling. Knowing they couldn't let him escape, the Phantom family transformed into their ghost states. Noticeably, when in her ghost form, not only did Sam's long hair carry over, but her bangs now covered her right eye instead of her left. Wasting no time, the three halfas took off and chased after Ira.

"We'll (hopefully) be right back," Danny said, prepping to chase after the escaped savage. "You stay here for safe keeping"

"Will do," Tucker said, giving the trio the thumbs up as they flew through the roof and gave chase to Ira.

**In The Next Chapter:**

**_Construction workers were in the process of building a skyscraper and unfortunately for them, their presence made them targets for the bloodthirsty Ira. With a malicious smirk, Ira melted three beams that were supporting the structure, resulting in the incomplete building swaying from side to side as if struggling not to collapse. There were eight workers doing work on the building that were in danger of falling to their deaths, forcing Danny, Sam, and Dani to once again turn their attention away from Ira in order to save innocent civilians. The eight workers were located on different floors of the intended skyscraper and were clinging for dead life to girders, poles, and beams at the edge of their platforms in case the building imploded. The Phantom Trio got them to safety before the building could collapse and before they lost their grip and fell to their deaths. Of course, by the time they had saved the construction workers, Ira had once again given them the slip._**

###########################

**_Danny and Dani naturally backed down, not knowing how to deal with the rabid beast that seemingly couldn't talk. Danny noticed that Sam had gone almost completely limp in Ira's arms, but breathed a sigh of relief when he saw she was still breathing. The gash on her head had healed at last, but that wasn't much consolation for Danny. Ira had them right where he wanted them and due to his already erratic behavior, they had no way of predicting what he would possibly do next. Ira didn't speak but instead snarled and hissed at the two halfas, an unspoken order for the two to back away even further. Maybe being trapped and sealed away for so long hadn't made Ira crazier; perhaps it had made him smarter, even if only marginally so. Unfortunately for the three halfas, even though he had control of the situation, Ira couldn't control his instincts and emotions and with one swift movement of his claws, slashed Sam's throat._**

**_SAM!" The two cried as they raced to her aid, allowing Ira to escape as rivulets of blood rapidly ran down her neck._**

**Things spiral out of control at seemingly every turn as Ira apparently has the luck of the heavens on his side. The chase isn't over and more determined now than before, Ira will do whatever it takes to keep from being locked away again. How much danger will this present to our heroes? You'll have to tune in to find out.**


End file.
